A Pokemon Trainer's Journey in Ylisse
by Red's Pikachu
Summary: Red accidentally ends up in Ylisse when he attempts to use his Explorer's badge to teleport to the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon world. There, he meets Chrom and the Shepherds in the prelude of the Ylisse-Plegia War. How will the Pokémon trainer fare in his new life at Ylisse? RedXHarem; no yaoi/yuri.
1. Chapter 1: A New Arrival

Credit to Bulbapedia for providing the cover image.

**Disclaimer:** Fire Emblem and Pokemon both belong to Nintendo. I do not own the two franchises.

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**Chapter 1:**** A New Arrival**

"Checkmate!" shouted a man's voice as he shot a golden glowing orb at a ruffian.

Said ruffian, a burly man wearing fur-based clothing, fell to the ground, unmoving from the effects of a powerful golden electric-based magic spell.

"There, that's the last of them," said the man who had casted the spell. The man wore a large dark violet coat, a pale lavender shirt, a pair of white trousers and a pair of brown boots. He also had white hair.

"Great job, Robin," said another man's voice. The man had dark blue colored hair and wore clothing that matched the color of his hair, a pair of white boots and a large piece of gleaming shoulder armor. A sheathe that holds a sword hangs from the white-colored belt at his waist and a ragged white cape hung behind his back.

"Thanks, Chrom," said Robin to the blue-haired man.

"Holy wow, Robin! Swords, sorcery AND tactics! Is there anything you cannot do?" exclaimed a young girl's voice. The girl wore what resembled a yellow dress over a bell-shaped cage, white trousers underneath the dress, brown boots, a white apron and a brown corset. Her blonde hair was done up into a pair of pigtails that curled at the ends. In her hand was a staff that was used for healing her fellow comrades.

"Thanks, Lissa," replied Robin, smiling to the blonde-haired girl.

"You're certainly no helpless victim, that much is for sure," said Chrom.

"Indeed. Perhaps you might even be capable of an explanation for how you came here?" said a brown-haired man wearing a set of sky-blue colored knight's plate armor. He looked to Robin sternly. Robin turned to the armored man.

"I understand your skepticism, Sir Frederick. And I cannot explain why only some knowledge has returned to me. But please believe me. I have shared all that I know," he said, maintaining eye contact with Frederick with a serious look.

"You fought to save Ylissean lives. My heart says that's enough," said Chrom gratefully.

"And your mind, milord? Will you not heed its counsel as well?" asked Sir Frederick, facing Chrom.

"Frederick, the Shepherds can use someone with Robin's talents. We've brigands and unruly neighbors, all looking to bloody our soil. Would you really have us lose such an able tactician? Besides, I believe his story, odd as it may be," replied Chrom.

"Th-thank you, Chrom" said Robin, surprised and grateful that Chrom accepted his story without much question.

"So how about it? Will you join us, Robin?" asked Chrom.

"I would be honored," replied Robin with a smile.

After Robin joined the group, known as the Shepherds, he, Chrom, Lissa and Frederick all discussed about the ruffians they had faced off and defeated several minutes ago. They realized that the bandits came from Ylisse's western neighbor, Plegia. The bandit group was one of several that entered Ylisse to raid the villages, hoping to start a war between Plegia and Ylisse.

They stopped when they heard what sounded like a faint "AHHH!"

"Did you guys hear something?" asked Robin.

"Hear what?" asked Lissa.

"I… don't know, but I thought I heard what sounded like a person shouting. Hm, I think I must be hearing things," replied Robin, shrugging.

A villager walked up to the group and asked them to join the villagers' feast as thanks for defeating the bandits. Much to Lissa's protest, the group politely declined the offer, stating that they needed to head back to Ylisstol, the capital of Ylisse.

Meanwhile, high in the sky, a teenaged boy was falling down. The boy wore a red baseball cap, a black t-shirt, blue pants, black wristbands and shoes, and a red vest with a white collar. A yellow backpack is strapped on his back and a line of six red-and-white golf-ball-sized spheres is clipped on his black-colored belt at his waist. His name is Red and he was the one who let out the shout that Robin heard far below.

Thinking quickly, Red plucked off one of the six spheres, a Pokeball, from his belt and held it out below him and pressed the button on the Pokeball, which expanded the Pokeball to the size of a large baseball, and pressed the button again.

"Go Charizard!" shouted Red.

A large creature resembling an orange winged dragon with a flame on its tail materialized from the Pokeball in a blob of white light. Charizard let out a loud roar.

"Charizard, fly me down to those woods," said Red as he fell onto Charizard's back.

Charizard let out a roar of affirmation as it flew down to the woods with its passenger safely on its back. They landed in a small clearing in the forest.

Red pulled a device that resembled a large yellow cellphone, a Pokenav, out of his backpack. He turned it on, hoping to find out where he landed.

"What? No signal? Where am I?" thought Red as he quickly took in his surroundings.

"Oh well. May as well camp here for the night and find a town tomorrow morning. Charizard, return," said Red as he held out his Pokeball to return the dragon Pokemon in a blob of red light. He then walked around the clearing and scooped up some small tree branches and twigs and lit up a campfire.

Meanwhile, in the same woods Red was in but at a different clearing, Chrom, Robin, Lissa and Frederick had also set up camp. They were eating some roasted bear meat, which smelled horrid to Lissa. Robin, who was very hungry, sloppily ate his portion of bear meat quickly, not caring much for the taste. Chrom enjoyed his share, while Frederick tried to talk his way out of eating the meat, which did not go unnoticed by Lissa. After their supper, they laid themselves out on the ground so they can go to sleep.

After a while, Chrom got up with a stir with a loud "HUH". To him, something was wrong in the woods. Lissa stirred with a yawn after hearing Chrom jump.

"Huh? What's wrong, big brother?" asked Lissa.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to awake you… but… something is amiss," replied Chrom.

"Define something."

"I'm not sure… I think I'll have a look around."

"Not alone, you won't! I'm coming too!"

"Heh, thanks, Lissa."

With that, the two siblings set off into the woods to investigate. The woods were eerily silent, especially since it was still in the dead of night.

"It sure is dark… and quiet. Where did the birds go?" asked Lissa.

"Something is wrong here…" said Chrom as he scanned his surroundings.

Suddenly, the ground began to rumble, as if in an earthquake!

"Ahh! Chrom!" shouted Lissa, surprised.

"Gods, what—agh, what is this madness?! Lissa, stay close!" commanded Chrom.

They looked to see that several trees quickly tilted and fell to the ground while the tremors continued. Chrom turned to Lissa.

"Lissa we have to run."

"What?"

"I mean it! Go!"

Chrom and Lissa took off, just as a large portion of the ground suddenly heaved behind them. Flames burst from the cracks as the forest floor, hurling chunks of molten rocks into the air. The flaming rocks landed in the forest, setting the trees on fire as Lissa and Chrom raced past them.

"Hey! This way!" shouted Chrom, as he and Lissa took off in another direction, barely dodging the falling debris. They managed to reach a clearing and surveyed the woods. Lissa looked up to see something strange happen.

"Chrom, what is that?" she asked, pointing her index finger to the sky.

Chrom looked at where Lissa pointed to what suddenly looked like a portal opening in the sky. The portal opened much like how a person's eye would, and had crystal-like edges. Surrounding the portal was what looked like the twelve symbols found on the Zodiac.

What looked like two people, each wearing warrior's clothing and armor, carrying a weapon and having ominously purple-colored skin, came out of the sky-blue portal and fell headfirst to the ground. Chrom and Lissa watched warily as the humanoids rose from the ground, appearing not the least shaken by the fall. The two zombies saw Chrom and Lissa with their glowing red eyes.

"Lissa, you better stand back," said Chrom.

Lissa did as she was told as Chrom unsheathed his sword, the Falchion. Chrom watched as the zombies approached them slowly before one of them suddenly charged, battleaxe at the ready. The zombie jumped into the air and swung its axe downwards to hit Chrom with it but Chrom dodged and struck the zombie with the Falchion. Chrom gasped as he did not hear the thud of a fallen victim as the zombie turned its head back with sickening bone crunching noises and swung its axe back at Chrom, who blocked the attack.

Meanwhile, Red, who had been awakened from his slumber, was racing through the woods when he heard what sounded like fighting as sounds of metal hitting metal rang through the air. The teenaged boy raced off to follow the sounds and found a terrifying sight: a blue-haired man fighting some lurching humanoid creature in a duel of the sword and the axe. He watched in awe from the nearby bushes as the man barely parried a blow from the zombie's axe and shoved said zombie to the ground before he jumped into the air and performed a downward stab into the zombie's back. The zombie let out a sickening moan before it faded into purple smoke.

"What… are those things?" whispered Red to himself as he looked around and saw the portal that was still open in the sky.

"Ahhh!" shouted Lissa.

Chrom (and Red) turned to see the blonde-haired girl with her back against a boulder, trapped by an approaching zombie that was forgotten earlier. Lissa, frightened, held her healing staff close to herself, hoping that it would be enough to block the undead's attacks. Red fingered one of his Pokeballs, ready to release one of his Pokemon to help the duo when he noticed something in the corner of his eye.

What looked like a blue-haired teenaged boy wearing blue clothes, a cape that matches his clothes in the back and is dark red on the other side and a dark blue metallic eye mask was seen racing out of the portal and jumping into the air. Once he landed, he raced off just as the zombie readied its axe. The zombie swung its axe at Lissa just as the boy got between them with his sword at his back, blocking the zombie's axe. Lissa, who was bracing herself for the blow but felt no pain at all, opened her eyes and gasped as she took in the sighted of the masked boy blocking the zombie's axe swing. The boy was grunting from the strength of the zombie, but refused to let up his sword.

"Help!" called the boy to Chrom. Red noticed that the boy's voice is oddly feminine.

"Right," responded Chrom as he ran toward the zombie with his Falchion ready.

The zombie heard Chrom rushing towards him as it lifted its axe and readied itself for Chrom. The masked boy felt the pressure coming from the zombie's axe lifting and readies his sword – Red noticed that the boy's sword looked identical to Chrom's Falchion. Together, Chrom and the boy swung their swords at the same time at the zombie; Red could not help but noticed that they practically mirrored each other's move. The zombie stood on the spot before disappearing in a burst of miasma-like smoke. The boy sheathed his sword.

"Quite an entrance. What's your name?" asked Chrom to the masked swordsman.

"…"

"Milord, milady! Are you hurt?" called Frederick as he and Robin raced in. Red took note of the two as he watched the scene.

"Frederick! Robin!" cried Lissa.

"Are these creatures commonplace in these lands?" asked Robin with a grimace.

"They're not from Ylisse, I promise you that, Robin," replied Chrom.

"No one is injured? Thank the gods…" said Frederick in relief.

"Thank the masked man who saved me! If it wasn't for him, I'd be – hey, where'd he go?" asked Lissa.

"We can worry about him later, AFTER we put these… things… to the blade. Eyes open now; we know nothing about this enemy," responded Frederick as he and the others (Red included) watched as more zombies appeared, approaching them.

"Looks like I'll have to show myself; they might help me know where I am," thought Red as he unclipped his chosen Pokeball from his belt. He then raced out into the clearing and threw the Pokeball into the air as Chrom and his companions turned to look at the red-capped newcomer.

"Pikachu, I choose you!"

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Reviews and constructive criticism are welcome!

As a heads-up, the upcoming chapters will have BGM (background music) suggestions so readers like you can have a basic idea of what to listen too. They will mostly come from Fire Emblem games, Super Smash Bros. games and Pokémon games/anime.


	2. Chapter 2: Meet Marth and Red

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fire Emblem and Pokemon; they belong to Nintendo.

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**Chapter 2:**** Meet Marth and Red**

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Attack!**_

"Pikachu, I choose you!" shouted Red as he threw his chosen Pokeball into the air. The Pokeball opened in midair and let out a blob of white light that materialized into a small yellow mouse-like Pokemon that had a pair of long, yellow ears with black tips, a pair of red cheek pouches, stubby limbs and a pair of brown horizontal stripes on its back. Its most noticeable feature was its tail that was shaped like a lightning bolt.

"Who is he? And what is that creature he just summoned?" asked Frederick to Chrom.

"No clue. Let's deal with those monsters before we ask him questions," replied Chrom as he readied his Falchion for the zombies while keeping a keen eye on Red.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" shouted Red.

"Pika—CHUUUUU!" let out the Mouse Pokemon as it unleashed a powerful lightning bolt. The lightning bolt connected with one of the zombies and finished it, making it disappeared in a plume of purple smoke. Everybody saw the powerful Electric-type move hit the zombie in awe. Lissa could not help but wonder how a small and cute looking creature such as Pikachu was capable of such power. However, the rest of the group quickly got out of their awe and readied their weapons (Frederick climbed onto his horse at the same time) and charged at the zombies.

"Captain Chrom! Wait, I'm coming! … Agh, I knew I shouldn'ta left them," said a new voice, this one belonging to a woman. The woman had short and wild red hair, dressed in red-colored armor and, like Frederick, was on a horse. She held a lance in her hands. She looked around and saw the zombies.

"All right, you ash-faced freaks! Which one of ya wants to try my lance on for size first? I know just the spot for it: shoved right up your –"

"Hold, milady!" said a new voice, this one belonging to a man; the man sounded much like a medieval nobleman – he certainly looked like one with his pale blue wig-like hair and fancy pale-blue-and-white clothing. He was carrying a bow and a quiver of arrows.

"Muh?" grunted the red-haired woman.

"Life may be long, but attraction is fleeting! Would you leave me in your sweet dust? Leave war to the warriors, dear bird! A beauty such as you need wage only love," replied the nobleman.

Red listened with a sweatdrop on his head as the two bantered on; he heard that the woman's name is Sully, while the nobleman is called Virion. His sweatdrop grew bigger when he heard the red-haired woman let out a battle grunt, which was followed by the nobleman's grunt of pain and a thud on the ground. The red-haired woman had kicked the flirtatious nobleman in the face. Red shook his head and refocused on the battlefield.

"Okay, Pikachu, get close to that group of zombies with Quick Attack, then let 'em have it with Discharge!" commanded Red.

"Pika!" called out Pikachu as it zoomed towards the zombies with Quick Attack, leaving a small trail of white light. It reached to the middle of a group of zombies before it jumped into the air to unleash a barrage of lightning bolts onto the zombies. The zombies did not have a chance to retaliate as they disappeared in purple plumes en masse from the Electric attack.

"There, that should be it for now. Pikachu, great work. Return and have a nice rest," said Red as he held up Pikachu's Pokeball, pointed it at Pikachu and pressed the button. Pikachu disappeared in a blob of white light as it was recalled back into its Pokeball. Red clipped the Pokeball back onto his belt and watched as the other warriors defeat the last of the zombies. When the last one disappeared, the group met up at the clearing just as the sun began to rise. Red, Chrom, Robin, Lissa, Frederick, Sully, Virion and the masked teenager all regarded one another.

**Music track:** _**Fire Emblem Awakening: "You May Call Me Marth."**_

"It seems all of the creatures are vanquished. These two took out the rest," said Frederick as he gestured to Red and the masked boy in blue. Red and the boy said nothing.

"Um, I never got to thank you… for before. So… thank you. You were very brave," said Lissa to the masked swordsman.

"You saved my sister's life. My name is Chrom. Might I ask yours?" asked Chrom to the same swordsman.

The masked swordsman remained silent for a few seconds before he said, "You may call me Marth."

"Marth? After the heroic king of old? You certainly fight like a hero. Where did you learn your way with a sword?" asked Chrom. Red watched the exchange with curiosity – and confusion.

"I'm not here to talk about me. The world teeters at a brink of a horrible calamity. What you saw tonight was but a prelude. You have been warned," Marth said in a cold yet feminine voice. Red grew even more confused, while the others mentally gasped. Marth quickly and silently left the clearing and disappeared into the woods.

"Huh? What's teetering where now? Hey, wait!" called Lissa.

"Not much for conversation is he?" commented Robin.

**Music track:** _**Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Welcome to the World of Pokemon!**_

"It appears his skills lie elsewhere. I wager we'll hear his name again. For now, I'm more concerned about the capital. We should make haste. But first, who are you?" said Frederick, turning to Red.

"Name's Red. And I am a Pokemon trainer," replied the red-capped teenager as he struck a pose with a Pokeball in hand.

After the introductions were made, Chrom's party began to ask several questions to Red.

"Pokemon trainer? What's that? Does it have something to do with that ball-thing in your hand?" asked Robin.

"Yes, it does have something to do with this, which is called a Pokeball. Pokemon trainers catch Pokemon using Pokeballs to train for Pokemon battles and contests," replied Red.

"What exactly is a Pokemon?" queried Lissa.

"Rather than explain what Pokemon are, I'll do you one better – I'll show you one," said Red with a grin. He pressed the button on the Pokeball. Pikachu rematerialized onto the ground once again.

"Pika-pika," chirped Pikachu as it jumped and rested on Red's shoulder.

"Pikachu here is one of the many species of Pokemon; there are well over six hundred different species of Pokemon, and many more are being discovered. They come in different shapes, sizes and forms, and have many different skills and abilities. For Pikachu's case, it is an Electric-type Mouse Pokemon," said Red.

"Hmmm… since Pikachu is just one of your Pokemon, do you have any others?" asked Frederick.

"Of course I do – I have five others with me. A Pokemon trainer can have many Pokemon under his or her ownership but each trainer can typically only carry up to six Pokemon at a time," replied Red as he gestured to the other Pokeballs attached to his belt.

"Oh boy! Can we see them? Please?" asked Lissa hopefully as she hopped up and down a little.

"Heh-heh. Of course you guys can see them. But you guys might want to stand back," chuckled Red as he removed the five other Pokeballs from his belt. The group took several steps back from the center of the clearing.

"Come on out, everybody!"

At once, the Pokeballs opened, releasing blobs of white light that materialized into Red's other Pokemon. One Pokemon was a bipedal winged orange dragon with a flame on the tip of its tail. Next to it stood what looked like a bipedal blue tortoise with a large brown shell with a pair of silver barrels peering from the back of it. Another looked like a large quadruped blue-colored dinosaur with a large pink flower with green leaves growing on its back. Lounging on the ground was another Pokemon with a gigantic black and beige rotund belly, stubby arms and feet and a small head with short triangular ears. The final Pokemon looked somewhat like a blue sea turtle with its purple shell on its back and four flap-like flippers; however it has a long blue neck and as a small horn at the top of its head.

"These are the other Pokemon that I have with me. They are Charizard, a Fire and Flying type, Blastoise, a Water type, Venusaur, a Grass and Poison type, Snorlax, a Normal type, and Lapras, a Water and Ice type," said Red, gesturing to each Pokemon.

"You mentioned types several times as in fire and water. Exactly do they do?" asked Robin.

"Types can determine what general type of moves a Pokemon can learn and can also determine whether a Pokemon has an advantage over another during a Pokemon battle. For instance, a Fire-type Pokemon, like Charizard, can learn several different Fire-type attacks, and will most likely have a hard time facing a Water-type Pokemon like Blastoise," replied Red. Charizard snorted while Blastoise looked smug.

"Wow" was the collective thoughts of Chrom's group.

After Red recalled all six members of his party, Chrom walked up to Red.

"It's clear that you're not from here, if the Pokemon and your odd clothes were of any indication. Where did you come from?" asked Chrom.

"I'm from Pallet Town of the Kanto region," responded Red.

"Pallet Town…? Kanto region…? I'm sorry, but I don't know the place," said Chrom, to Red's disappointment.

"Then where am I?"

"You're in the halidom of Ylisse. We're not far from Ylisstol, Ylisse's capital."

"Wow, it's like a whole different world… or it IS a whole different world."

Chrom, Lissa, Frederick and Robin looked at one another. Red almost sounded like Robin when Chrom, Lissa and Frederick first met him – lost and confused. However, unlike Robin, Red seemed to be sure of his own identity; he did not have amnesia.

"Do you remember how you got here?" asked Frederick.

"Hmm… I do recall trying to use my Explorer's badge to reach a world where only Pokemon inhabit. Turns out that I ended up falling in the sky above here (good thing I have Charizard or I would have been a goner). Something probably went wrong," said Red, pondering.

"Well, in the meantime, why don't you join us? I'm sure the Shepherds would welcome you," said Chrom.

"Yeah, that little yellow bugger roasted some serious ass out in the field," added Sully.

"And I wouldn't mind seeing what your companions are capable of, Red," said Virion with a smile.

"And who knows? Maybe you can even help us protect the Ylissean citizens from bandits and more!" cheered on Lissa.

"Well, milord and milady do trust you, so you should be trustworthy enough to join us," said Frederick.

"I wonder what sort of tactics you come up with for your Pokemon during those Pokemon battles," piped up Robin.

"Alright, alright, I'll join you guys. Besides, I have nowhere to go otherwise. Lead the way," said Red, chuckling at their enthusiasm.

With that, the group set off to Ylisstol.

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For those who might flip on me for not showing Espeon in Red's party, Red's team is based off the one from the remakes of Pokémon Gold, Silver and Crystal games.

Reviews and constructive criticism are welcome!


	3. Chapter 3: Meeting the Shepherds

Thanks for reading the story thus far (especially to the two who have followed/added it to their favorites)!

However, I'd like some reviews for this story; I can't get a proper read on what you guys like/dislike on this story if you remain silent!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fire Emblem and Pokemon; those belong to Nintendo.

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**Chapter 3:** **Meeting the Shepherds**

**Music track:**_** Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Treasure Town**_

It was finally morning when Chrom, Robin, Lissa, Frederick and Red arrived at Ylisstol. Sully and Virion retired to the Shepherds' barracks just outside of the city to rest from the late night encounter of the zombies. The streets were buzzing with the citizens' activities in market day.

"So this is Ylisstol, the capital of Ylisse… I've never seen so many people!" exclaimed Robin as he looked around the streets and its bustle.

"Hmm, Ylisstol does remind me of Castelia City from the Unova region… just without the really tall skyscrapers," commented Red before letting out a big yawn. The yawn earned Red a giggle from Lissa and a few chuckles from Chrom, Robin and Frederick. The group then shrugged at Red's statement; they figured they may as well get to know him when they get to their barracks.

"It appears the city was spared the chaos we encountered, thank the gods. I see no evidence of the quake; it must've been limited to the forest," said Frederick, grateful that there was no presence of zombies from the night before in the area.

"Well, that's a relief!" said Lissa cheerfully.

The party continued on through the crowded streets until they heard one of the villagers shouted "Look! The exalt has come to see us!"

Just then, the exalt herself arrived to the city square. The exalt had long blonde hair and wore a large green and white robe. She was a breathtaking sight for many.

"The exalt is your ruler, yes?" asked Robin, turning to Frederick.

"Yes, her name is Lady Emmeryn," replied the mounted knight.

"Is it safe for her to walk among commoners like this?"

"The exalt is a symbol of peace – Ylisse's most prized quality. Long ago, at the dawn of our age, the fell dragon tried to destroy the world. But the first exalt joined forces with the divine dragon and laid the beast low. Exalt Emmeryn reminds us of all of the peace we fought for then."

"With Plegia poking at our borders, the people need her. She's a calming presence when some might otherwise call for war," said Chrom.

"Then the Ylissean people are indeed lucky to have her," said Robin with a smile.

"She's also the best big sister anyone can ask for!" giggled Lissa happily.

"Yes, I imagine she – wait what? She's your— But wouldn't that make you and Chrom…"

"… the prince and princess of the realm of the realm, yes. I understand Red not knowing this, but you remembered Chrom's name but not this?" cut in Frederick, chuckling.

Red's eyes were wide open in surprise by the revelation that he was in the presence of a prince and a princess.

"You said you were 'shepherds!'" protested Robin.

"And so we are… in a manner of speaking. We just have a LOT of sheep," said Chrom.

"By 'sheep,' you mean the Ylisseans, correct?" asked Red, amused.

"That's right," chuckled Lissa.

After some banter amongst the group regarding proper etiquette with royalty which was promptly dismissed, Chrom asked Robin and Red if they want to meet the exalt. They turned to see Lady Emmeryn making her way back to the castle. The two accepted the offer and the group set off after the exalt.

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "Here we are! The Shepherds' garrison!"**_

The group arrived at the throne room in the castle. The exalt saw Chrom and his group, noticing the two newcomers.

"Chrom! Lissa! Welcome home. Oh, and good day, Frederick. How fare you all?" asked Emmeryn.

"Well, we shouldn't have any bandit problems for a while," replied Chrom.

"Wonderful. And our people?"

"Safe as they can be, Emm, but we still need to watch the borders. The brigands crossed over from Plegia."

"Forgive me, milord. My pegasus knights should have intercepted them," said a woman dressed in bronze-colored plate armor and had her pale white hair tied in a tight bun.

"No, Phila. Your duty is here with the exalt," said Chrom to the armored woman.

"And besides, we had plenty of help!" chimed in Lissa.

"Ah, you speak of your two new companions here?" queried Emmeryn as she looked to Robin and Red.

"This is Robin and that's Red. Robin fought bravely with us against the Plegians while Red helped us out while in the woods last night. I've decided to make the two of them Shepherds," replied Chrom.

"It sounds as though Ylisse owes you two a debt of gratitude, Robin and Red," said Emmeryn gratefully.

"Not at all milady!" said Robin, while Red bowed respectfully.

"Forgive me, Your Grace, but I must speak. Robin claims to have lost his memory but it is only that: a claim. We cannot rule out the possibility that he is a brigand himself or even a Plegian spy. I'm rather unclear of what to think of Red though since he clearly did not lose his memory but he is seemingly otherworldly," said Frederick sternly.

"Frederick!" hissed Chrom indignantly.

"Yet you allowed these two into the castle, Chrom. Did they have your trust?" asked Emmeryn calmly.

"Yes. These two risked their lives for our people. That's good enough for me," replied Chrom.

"Well then, Robin, Red… It seems you two have earned Chrom's faith and as such, you have mine as well," said Emmeryn.

"Milady," said Robin, silently thanking her.

"But thank you, Frederick, for your prudence as always. Chrom and Lissa are blessed to have so tireless a guardian. I do hope that they remember to mention that from time to time," said Emmeryn.

"They occasionally express something akin to gratitude, Your Grace," said Frederick. He turned to Phila.

"Phila, I assumed you've heard about the deathly creatures we encountered, yes?"

"Yes, milord. They've been sighted all across Ylisse."

Phila's reply earned a couple of gasps from Chrom's group.

"Chrom, we are about to hold council. I was hoping you could join us," said Emmeryn.

"Of course," said Chrom.

"I think that's our cue, Robin, Red! C'mon, lemme show you the barracks," said Lissa to the two males.

She then scuttled off out of the castle, leaving Robin and Red running to catch up to her.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Mystrey Dungeon: Stop, Thief!**_

Red noticed that Lissa had run far ahead of him and Robin so he thought up of a mischievous idea as he fingered one of his Pokeballs before he unclipped it.

"Go, Charizard!"

The orange dragon materialized onto the ground. Red climbed onto its back and pointed at Lissa (who was by now very far away from him).

"Charizard, use Fly to catch up to Lissa and follow her," said Red before yawning.

Charizard roared a little before it took off into the skies with Red shouting "Woohoo!" as he snapped out of his lack-of-sleep-induced stupor by the awesomely exhilarating rush of flight. Its unusual appearance drew some shouts from the Ylissean onlookers down below.

"Look up there!"

"What in Naga's name is that?"

"Is that a bird?"

"Is that a pegasus?"

"It looks like an orange dragon!"

"Mommy, can I see it?"

"Is it on fire?"

"Hey look, there's a boy on it!"

"Gods, what did I eat last night – oh crud, diarrhea!"

"I really need to stop drinking…"

**Music track:**_** Pokemon: Come Along!**_

In the outskirts of Ylisstol, Lissa, Robin and Red (who returned Charizard behind some bushes) arrived at the Shepherds' barracks, which consisted of wooden and stone buildings that looked like giant storage sheds, tents and horse stables. They walked into one of the buildings and saw a burly man with spiky blonde hair with some armor on his arms and legs and a woman who has pale brown hair with pale pink body armor on and tall maroon boots. The two were chatting until Lissa walked up to them.

"Here we are: the Shepherds' garrison! Go on, make yourselves at home," said Lissa to Robin and Red as the said two walked into the room. The burly man and the pale-brown haired girl turn to look at Robin and Red as the two took in their new surroundings.

"Hm… I wonder if there's any space around to train my Pokemon," thought Red.

"Lissa, my treasure! Are you alright? I've been on pins and needles!" called out a new voice, which sounded like that of a girl from a noble family.

The voice's owner rushed into the room. The girl had fancy pink colored clothing on and had her blonde hair done to look like coiled braids behind her back. She carried a short pink closed parasol in her gloved hands.

"Oh, hey, Maribelle!" greeted Lissa to the blonde.

"'Oh, hey' yourself! I've sprouted fourteen gray hairs fretting over you!" snapped Maribelle.

"Aw, you worry too much. I can handle a battle or two! …Although I could do without the bugs and the bear barbecue…"

Red and Robin looked at one another with amused expressions before chuckling.

"Hey, squirt! Where's Chrom? I bet he had a rough time without ol' Teach and his trusty axe!" said the burly man.

"Oh, so you're 'Teach' now, Vaike, is that it? And here I thought people were just born lacking wits. It can be taught?" giggled Lissa to the burly man.

"Ha! Never doubt the Vaike! … Wait, was that an insult?"

Robin covered his mouth with his hand to stifle his laughter while Red fell onto the dirt floor, rolling and laughing hard at Vaike's expense.

"Hey!" groaned Vaike.

"Beg pardon, but when might we see the captain?" queried the pale-brown haired girl.

"Poor Sumia. She's been beside herself with concern; her eyes were scanning the horizon all day during training – she might have earned fewer bruises fighting blindfolded," joked Maribelle.

"Aw, Sumia, that's so sweet of you to worry about Chrom," said Lissa.

"Worry? Well, I… He's our captain and our prince – of course I'd worry!" said Sumia.

"So, who are the two strangers?" asked Vaike.

"No one's stranger than you, Vaike… But allow me to introduce Robin and Red!" said Lissa, cheerfully gesturing to the two boys respectively.

"They just joined the Shepherds. Chrom's made Robin our new tactician while Red's our one and only Pokemon trainer in our group. You should see all the tricks they've got up their sleeves!" she continued.

Robin chuckled at Lissa's enthusiasm while Red twirled a Pokeball on his finger.

"Oh yeah? Can any of them do this?" quipped Vaike before he let out a LOUD and LONG belch that echoed in the room.

"Niiiiiiiiice!" exclaimed Red as he offered a high-five to Vaike, who accepted, with a cheeky grin.

"I'm sure I have much to learn in the belching arts, 'Teach.' In any case, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintances," chuckled Robin with an amused smile.

"Yeah, likewise," said Red, assenting with the tactician's words.

"Ugh, Vaike, that was abhorrent! Must you baseborn oafs pollute even the air with your buffoonery? Robin, Red! Don't encourage him!" snapped Maribelle in disgust. She then skulked out of the room.

"Don't take it to heart, you two. Maribelle warms to people slowly," said Sumia to the two newcomers.

"Or burns too quickly! But yeah, give her time," retorted Lissa.

Just then, Chrom arrived and entered the room.

"Ah! Captain! You've returned! I was – I mean, we were so –" called out Sumia before she clumsily tripped onto the ground.

Red winced at the thud before asking, "You okay?" to Sumia, who was getting up and dusting herself off.

"Yes, I'm fine. Thanks for your concern though," replied Sumia cheerfully.

"… Those boots of yours again?" asked Chrom, unsurprised.

"No! I mean yes! I mean…" stuttered out Sumia before sighing.

"Calm down and take a deep breath," said Red gently after putting a hand on Sumia's shoulder. Lissa felt a slight twinge of jealousy at Red's gesture.

"Okay, you guys have some free time for now. I have some things to check with the council. Apparently, there have been some sightings of an orange dragon flying over Ylisstol. Did it so happen to have something to do with you, Red?" asked Chrom, leveling his gaze at the Pokemon trainer who rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Heh heh, Lissa practically took off as if she had too much candy when we were about to come here. I had to use Charizard to fly after her," laughed Red. Lissa blushed and pouted at Red's reply, prompting Red to gently pat her head which caused Lissa to blush a bit more. Sumia became curious when she heard that Red can fly an orange dragon.

"Well, she does have a lot of candy, so I can't blame her," chuckled Chrom before he left the barracks.

"So, what's the deal with the orange dragon and being a Pokemon trainer?" asked Vaike.

Red responded by giving them essentially the same explanation that he had given to Chrom, Robin, Lissa, Frederick, Sully and Virion back in the woods. Upon hearing the explanation, Sully and Virion entered the room hoping to hear more about Pokemon.

"I forgot to ask this, but how many types are there?" asked Robin.

"There are seventeen different types, and a Pokemon can be of two types. Each type has its own strengths and weaknesses," replied Red.

"What types are there?"

"There are Normal, Fire, Water, Electric, Grass, Ice, Rock, Ground, Flying, Fighting, Psychic, Ghost, Steel, Dragon, Bug, Poison and Dark types."

"May we see your Pokemon?" asked Sumia.

"Definitely!" responded Red with a grin, which made Sumia (and Lissa) blush a little. The trainer then plucked off his six Pokeballs from his belt and tossed them into the air, shouting out "Come out, everybody!"

Pikachu, Charizard, Blastoise, Venusaur, Snorlax and Lapras all materialized into the room. Red introduced them to Vaike and Sumia who looked at them in awe.

"I have more, but I need to recall one of them and swap it out," said Red.

"Cools. Like what?" asked Sully.

Red pulled out a flat red rectangular object, which drew some confused looks from the others.

"My word, what is that?" asked Virion.

"This is a Pokedex. It's like an encyclopedia that can give me basic information on the Pokemon that I encounter. It's also how I'm swapping Pokemon from my party to storage," answered Red who recalled Lapras and swapped it out. Another Pokeball appeared in Red's hand.

"Go, Espeon!"

What looked like a lavender cat with a red gem on its forehead and with a forked tail materialized into the room. It mewed softly.

"This is Espeon, a powerful Psychic type Pokemon."

"Wow, it's so cute! How did you get it?" asked Lissa who immediately began to pet it, earning a few purrs from the feline Pokemon.

Red responded by talking about capturing and training Pokemon and Pokemon evolution. The others listened with rapt attention.

"So, anybody wanna try out a Pokemon battle?" asked Red.

"Oo! Me!" shouted Lissa enthusiastically.

"I'll like to try," said Sumia shyly.

"Alright, let's go outside. We don't need Frederick onto us if we wreck something," chuckled Red.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Battle Revolution: Select Your Pokemon! **_**OR _Pokémon: Contest!_**

The group relocated outside into a grassy field. Red noticed that a tall man with medium black hair and large bulky white plate armor was standing nearby, watching them before putting said man out of his mind.

"Did he actually see me?" wondered the man.

Red swapped out his party Pokemon and stored them away before picking up a batch of six Pokeballs. He held them out to Sumia and Lissa.

"In my arms are the Pokeballs holding Grotle, Monferno, Prinplup, Staravia, Luxio and Gabite. Each of you can only pick three of them," said Red.

"I call first!" shouted Lissa. She browsed the party using Red's Pokedex before selecting Prinplup, Luxio and Staravia, leaving Sumia with Grotle, Monferno and Gabite. She then handed Sumia the Pokedex so she could examine the remaining Pokémon before the battle. After Sumia was finished, she returned the Pokedex to Red. Then Lissa and Sumia walked away from each other to give their Pokemon some space in the field when they get sent out. Sully, Virion, Vaike and Maribelle (who just showed up) watched with interest. Red decided to act as referee for the Pokemon match.

"Okay, this will be a three-on-three single battle. Both trainers are able to substitute Pokemon at any time. Since Lissa chose her three Pokémon first, she will send out a Pokémon first. Lissa, select your Pokemon!" prompted Red as he raised both of his arms into the air.

* * *

Cliffhanger! Reviews and constructive criticism welcome! Any of you guys want Lissa or Sumia to win the battle? Tell me in your reviews! (If not enough reviewers answer, I will decide how the battle goes and ends.)

As some of you can tell, the six Pokémon Lissa and Sumia are borrowing from Red make up the party Pokémon of the male Rental pass from Pokémon Battle Revolution.

Oh, and I'm now available as a beta-reader!


	4. Chapter 4: Battle! Lissa VS Sumia!

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Fire Emblem or Pokemon; those two belong to Nintendo.

* * *

**Chapter 4: Battle! Lissa VS. Sumia!**

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: VS. Trainer **_**(any region)**

"Go, Prinplup!" called out Lissa as she tossed the Pokeball into the air which released what looked like a blue colored penguin in a blob of light.

"Prinplup!" cried out the Penguin Pokemon.

Sumia, remembering Red's explanantion on type matchups in Pokemon battles, made her first choice by tossing one of her Pokeballs into the air.

"Go, Grotle!"

In another blob of white light, a Pokemon looking like a tortoise appeared. It was on its four legs, has a yellow shell, green body, and what looked like short green bushes growing on its shell.

"Grotle!" cried out the Grove Pokemon as it and Prinplup stared down at each other, waiting for their trainers' orders.

"Prinplup, let's start this off with Pluck!" commanded Lissa, not wasting any time.

"Prin!"

Prinplup quickly charged at Grotle with a glowing beak, ready to strike.

"Um, Grotle, stop it in its tracks with Razor Leaf!" countered Sumia, thinking quickly.

Grotle grunted before it unleashed a barrage of shuriken-like leaves. The Razor Leaf bombarded the Penguin Pokemon before said Pokemon rolled back to Lissa, shaken by the super-effective damage.

"Prinplup, get up!" called Lissa to the Pokemon. Prinplup shakily stood up.

"Great, now use Metal Claw!"

Prinplup charged at Grotle again, this time with its claws at its wingtips glowing metallic silver. It slashed at Grotle's face, shunting it back a meter or two.

"Gah! Uh, Grotle, use Leech Seed!" shouted Sumia, taken back by Prinplup's successful retaliation.

Grotle then fired a round brown seed onto Prinplup. The seed landed on Prinplup's head and burst open, laying down roots all over Prinplup's body. The Penguin Pokemon cried out in pain as its health was sapped away. Grotle, meanwhile, looked slightly healthier.

"Prinplup, Water Pulse!" called out a nervous-looking Lissa.

Prinplup conjured and fired a sphere of water from its beak. The Water Pulse connected, splashing a large amount of water on Grotle harshly.

"Grotle, Rock Smash!" responded Sumia.

Grotle quickly stomped one of its front feet into the ground hard. The stomp sent small chunks of rocks flying at Prinplup.

"Prinplup, dodge!" called Lissa desperately.

Prinplup attempted to move but it had already lost a fair amount of energy to Grotle's Leech Seed. It was quickly pummeled by the rubble before it was sent rolling on the ground.

"Prinplup, get up!"

Prinplup slowly and shakily stood up on its two feet before suddenly letting out a battle cry. Its body suddenly glowed blue, like that of a rushing river before said glow faded.

"My word, whatever is that beautiful glow?" asked Virion.

"That, Virion, is Prinplup's ability, Torrent, becoming active. Prinplup's Water-type attacks will become much stronger when it's about to be defeated," replied Red.

"Wow, so one should still be careful even if the enemy is close to being taken down. Good to know," commented Robin, who, along with the others, was watching the battle closely.

"Damn, that battle is hella good," said Sully.

"What exactly do these abilities do anyway?" asked Vaike.

"It depends on the ability in question as each Pokemon can have different abilities. Some abilities can take effect right away while others will activate under certain conditions. Either way, abilities can give Pokemon the edge they need to win a battle," answered Red.

"Prinplup, Water Pulse!" shouted Lissa.

Prinplup charged up and fired another water sphere. The sphere, however, is much larger and more condensed due to the effects of Prinplup's Torrent ability. It sailed for Grotle.

"Grotle, Razor Leaf at that attack!" called Sumia, afraid of the large Water Pulse.

Grotle fired off a second barrage of shuriken leaves. The leaves intercepted the Water Pulse, stopping it in its flight. The leaves and the sphere pushed each other to and fro for several seconds. The deadlock ended with a giant explosion.

Everybody waited for the smoke (caused by the explosion) to clear with bated breath. When the smoke finally cleared, it revealed Prinplup lying on its back, fainted, and Grotle, which was breathing heavily but still standing with a lot of scratches on its shell.

"Prinplup is unable to battle! The winner of this round is Grotle!" decreed Red, raising his arm to signify Sumia's victory.

Sumia smiled modestly as she earned a round of applause from the audience while Lissa returned the unconscious penguin.

"Lissa, send out your second Pokemon," prompted Red.

Lissa pondered her next choice for a few moments before she tossed her second Pokeball into the air, shouting "Go, Staravia!"

A large dark brown colored bird Pokemon appeared in the air, flapping its feathered wings. At once, it locked eyes with Grotle's before letting out a loud screech. Grotle became slightly fearful of the Starling Pokemon.

"Grotle, Razor Leaf!" called Sumia.

"Grotle!" grunted the Grove Pokemon as it launched its third volley of leaves.

"Staravia, dodge!" countered Lissa.

Staravia flew to the side quickly, evading the leaves and surprising Grotle.

"It's fast!" gasped Sumia.

"Now, Aerial Ace!" called out Lissa.

"Staravia!" cried the bird Pokemon before it dove down at Grotle with its body glowing white. One could see slipstream lines around Staravia as it flew. Staravia then zoomed through the air and slammed into Grotle hard, sending the tortoise-like Pokemon screaming, rolling and tumbling over the ground before sliding to Sumia's feet.

"Grotle…" moaned the defeated Pokemon as it fainted from the sheer power of Staravia's Aerial Ace.

"Grotle is unable to battle! The winner is Staravia! Sumia, send out your next Pokemon!" prompted Red as he raised his arm, this time signifying Lissa's victory. Sumia recalled Grotle.

"Now we're even," said Lissa cheerfully as the audience applauded her for her efforts.

"Right," said Sumia as she selected her second Pokeball and tossed it into the air.

"Go, Gabite!"

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Fight! Rival (Johto)**_

In a blob of light, a bipedal Pokemon resembling a cross between a jet fighter plane (not that the audience or the battlers knew what that was) and a shark appeared in the field. It had sharp claws, dark blue scales and scarlet underbelly.

"Gabite!" snarled the Cave Pokemon at Staravia.

"What a barbaric creature!" exclaimed Maribelle as she cringed from looking at Gabite's feral visage.

"Gabite, Sand Tomb!" shouted Sumia.

"Staravia, fly up!" responded Lissa.

Gabite crouched down and roared, raising a sand twister from the ground. However, the attack failed as Staravia merely flew over it, unharmed.

"Ah!" gasped Sumia.

"Such grace!" exclaimed Virion, commenting on Staravia's easy-looking flight.

"Damn, a badassed move like that should've hit," muttered Sully, commenting on Gabite's Sand Tomb.

"While Gabite's a strong Pokemon, its Ground-type attacks are completely useless on a Flying-type Pokemon like Staravia," explained Red.

"Staravia, use Aerial Ace!" commanded Lissa.

"Gabite, use Aerial Ace too!" countered Sumia.

Staravia flew at Gabite while Gabite rushed towards Staravia, each with slipstream lines trailing behind them. They charged and collided at one another head on at the center of the field with a loud resounding BOOM! Staravia and Gabite tried to push each other back, each refusing to let up in hopes of overpowering the opponent with sheer physical power. Another explosion rocked the field, sending both Pokemon back, each trying to shake off the pain from the interception and explosion.

"What power!" exclaimed Vaike.

"Are you okay?!" shouted Lissa and Sumia to their Pokemon. Both Pokemon responded with affirmative battle cries, ready for more.

"Alright, let's end this, Staravia! Use Take Down!" called out Lissa.

"Gabite, Dragon Pulse!" responded Sumia.

Staravia quickly flew at Gabite while the Dragon-Ground type Pokemon responded by opening its jaws and firing a beam of fiery draconic energy. The Dragon Pulse stopped Staravia's charge briefly before the bird Pokemon ploughed straight through, colliding into Gabite's lower jaw.

BOOM!

"GABITE!" screamed the Cave Pokemon in pain before it fell prostate on the ground, unconscious. Staravia flew back up into the air before it cringed from the recoil damage caused by using Take Down.

"Gabite is unable to battle. The winner is Staravia!" decreed Red, raising his arm again to signify Lissa's victory again.

"Wow, Staravia is able to take out two Pokemon in a row; Sumia's got only one left now," said Robin as he watched Sumia recall Gabite back into its Pokeball.

"Sumia, send out your Pokemon," prompted Red.

Sumia tossed her final Pokeball into the air.

"Go, Monferno! Use Mach Punch!" shouted Sumia.

In a blob of light, an orange monkey-like Pokemon appeared. It had what looked like a blue eye mask and looked as if it had a large red nose. The tip of its tail glowed with a large flame. The Playful Pokemon immediately charged at Staravia at ludicrously high speeds (much to Lissa's surprise and horror) before it leaped into the air and slammed a glowing fist into it, sending the bird Pokemon flying. The Starling Pokemon crashed on the ground, spread-eagled (no pun intended) and out cold.

"Staravia is unable to battle! Monferno is the winner!" called out Red, raising his arm to signify Sumia's victory.

"That was fast," said Sully as Lissa returned Staravia to its Pokeball.

"Staravia must have been weakened during its fight against Gabite. It shouldn't be too surprising that a fast attack like that would finish it," noted Robin.

"And now it's on to the final battle. Lissa, send out your last Pokemon!" prompted Red.

"Go, Luxio!" called out Lissa as she threw her last Pokeball into the air.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Fight! Champion (Johto)**_

A black, blue and yellow colored Pokemon appeared onto the field. It was feline in appearance. At once, Luxio locked its sights onto Monferno before growling, ready for a fight.

"Luxio, use Bite!" commanded Lissa.

"Lux!" called out the Spark Pokemon as it charged at Monferno, mouth open, baring its fangs.

"Monferno, dodge and use Sunny Day!" called out Sumia.

The monkey Pokemon sidestepped Luxio's bite before firing a fireball out of its mouth straight into the air. The fireball lit up, warming the air greatly and intensifying the sun's rays.

In the audience, Maribelle quickly opened her parasol to provide herself some shade.

"Is it me, or is it really hot here?" asked Vaike.

"From what I could guess, Sunny Day seems to brighten and warm the battlefield up," surmised Robin.

"Luxio, use Quick Attack!" shouted Lissa.

Luxio quickly charged at Monferno at a similarly ludicrous speed that Monferno charged at Staravia with earlier, leaving a white trail behind it.

BOOM!

The Quick Attack connected, sending Monferno barreling across the ground. Monferno quickly got up, not ready to give in so easily.

"Again!" shouted Lissa

"Monferno, Grass Knot!" retaliated Sumia.

Monferno's eyes glowed green. As Luxio charged again, some blades of grass growing on the field tied themselves together in front of it. Luxio, unaware, suddenly tripped over the Grass Knots. Its momentum from the Quick Attack caused the Spark Pokemon to be sent hurtling towards Monferno.

"Now, Fire Punch!" shouted Sumia, seeing an opportunity for a powerful attack.

"Mon-ferno!" screeched the Playful Pokemon as it threw a flaming fist at the incoming airborne Luxio. The flames suddenly intensified and exploded from the harsh sunlight (courtesy of the Sunny Day from earlier), sending the Spark Pokemon flying back at Lissa with burn marks on its fur.

"That's it! Luxio use Charge!" snapped Lissa.

Luxio shakily got onto its feet before it roared. Its body glowed yellow as electricity arced over it, taking in electrical power.

"Now, Spark!" shouted Lissa.

"Fire Punch once more!" countered Sumia.

The two combatants charged at each other, one with an electric cloak surrounding its body, while the other with a fiery fist at the ready. They both slammed their attacks into each other, locking each other into a stalemate. They held out together until the stalemate ended with yet another explosion, sending both Pokemon flying.

"Luxio, no!"

"Ah! Monferno, no!"

Both Pokemon landed on the ground, unable to continue their battle.

Red looked over the two Pokemon. Neither of them appeared ready to stir.

"Both Luxio and Monferno are unable to battle. Since both trainers do not have any Pokemon left, this battle ends in a draw!" he decreed.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Victory Fanfare (VS. Trainer)**_

"Wow, a draw. A marvelous one at that though," smiled Virion.

"That was a lot of ass-kicking from both sides. Nice!" cheered on Sully.

"They may be barbaric but they fight with admirable bravery," said Maribelle, closing her parasol.

"Wow, imagine such skills at our disposal when we have to fight bandits again," said Robin.

"Awesome! Looks like Teach found some sparring partners!" laughed Vaike with a grin.

"You two did a great job on your first Pokemon battle. Both of you gave it your all," said a beaming Red to Sumia and Lissa.

The two girls blushed from Red's praise before they looked at one another before shaking hands, silently thanking one another for a great battle. They, with blushes on their faces, then thanked Red for loaning them the Pokemon used for the battle and returned them. Red, who did not seem to notice the girls' blushes, stored the Pokemon away in his Pokedex before withdrawing his usual party Pokemon.

After an intense first battle between Sumia and Lissa, the Shepherds headed back to the barracks, some exhausted while others excited about Pokemon battling.

* * *

So, how's the Pokémon battle? Tell me in your reviews! Yes, it ended in a draw since there was no clear winner in the reviews for the previous chapter.

As some of you can tell, Lissa and Sumia are going to be part of Red's harem.

Once again, reviews and constructive criticism are welcome!


	5. Chapter 5: To Regna Ferox!

Sorry for the rather long wait! Thanks for few reviews, follows, and favorites!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pokemon or Fire Emblem; those belong to Nintendo.

* * *

**Chapter 5: To Regna Ferox!**

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "Here we are! The Shepherds' garrison!"**_

Night time had reached the barracks. Chrom and Frederick finally returned from the council in time for supper.

"All right, listen, everyone: in the morning, we'll be marching to Regna Ferox," said Chrom.

"Regna Ferox?" asked Red. Robin had the same question too in his head.

"A unified kingdom to Ylisse's north. Inhabited by barbarians, or so it's said," explained Sumia.

"Warriors are what they are, and we'll need their strength to quell this new menace. Typically, the exalt would request such aid in person. But given recent events… well, the people might worry should my sister suddenly leave the capital, so the task has been passed to us," elaborated Chrom.

He looked around at his fellow Shepherds.

"Now, this mission is strictly voluntary, so if, for any—"

"I volunteer!" cut in Lissa.

"Me too! You'll be needin' ol' Teach along for such as delicate mission!" added Vaike.

"I'll go as well," said the tall man in the bulky plate armor blankly. His declaration drew stares from the others but Red, who was already aware that he was there.

"…What? I've been here the whole time!" exclaimed the man.

"What's your name?" asked Red.

"My name is Kellam. It's rather new that someone actually sees me without staring at me or screaming in surprise," said the man after he calmed down.

"Red, who are you talking to?" asked Lissa.

"…"

"I… I, um…" stuttered Sumia.

"Yes, Sumia?" asked Chrom.

"It's just that… I'm not sure I'm quite ready for a proper mission yet. I'll probably get in the way," replied Sumia glumly.

"Oh, come on! You did great during that first Pokemon battle with Lissa!" groaned Red.

"Besides, you can stay behind the main group and if a battle is met, just watch and learn, okay? Your choice, of course, but some lessons can only be learned on the battlefield," offered Chrom.

"W-well if you think it is wise, Captain," said Sumia.

"Don't worry too much! My Pokemon did not become strong just by sitting around doing nothing!" laughed Red.

"Just stay by me and you'll be fine," said Chrom.

"Oh yes! I mean – Yes, sir, I'll do that!" responded Sumia.

With that, the Shepherds finished their supper and turned in for the night.

The next morning, the Shepherds gathered in the grass fields, ready to start the march to Regna Ferox.

"Is everyone ready? We've a long march ahead," said Chrom.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Guildmaster Wigglytuff**_

"W-wait for me!" shouted a man's voice. The man had perpetually messy brown hair and green armour on. His name was Stahl.

"Stahl?" said Chrom.

"Why am I the last to hear about this expedition to Ferox?"

"Huh? But Vaike was supposed to… Vaike! Did you forget to tell Stahl about our mission?!" demanded Lissa.

"The Vaike never forgets! … I just don't always remember is all…" trailed off a nervous Vaike.

Red palmed his own face at the silly contradiction.

"Ugh… I swear, you'd forget your own name if you weren't constantly saying it yourself! Speaking of which, are you SURE you remembered your axe this time?" snapped Lissa.

"Hey! That was one time! … Okay, twice, but training sessions don't count," said Vaike before he waved a gleaming iron axe around.

"Anyway, I got it right here! Teach is loaded and ready for action! Glad to have you along, Stahl, old buddy," he laughed.

"That makes one of us. I was in such a hurry, I had to miss breakfast! There were muffins and cakes and… Well, I'll you all about it while we march…" groaned Stahl as his stomach rumbled, drawing sweatdrops from the others.

"Your name is Stahl, right?" queried Robin.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Robin, Red. This is Stahl, one of our finest," said Chrom.

"Hello, Robin, Red. Miriel told me we had two new Shepherds. Er, Miriel's one of our mages. She should catch up soon," greeted Stahl.

With that, Chrom and his troops set off.

**Music track: **_**Super Smash Bros. Brawl: Main Theme (The Legend of Zelda)**_

After a while, the Shepherds neared a bridge. There was an unpleasant sight to behold.

"Look over there! It's the zombies from two nights ago!" gasped Red.

"Gods, have the Risen spread this far?!" shouted a shocked Chrom.

"'Risen?'" queried Robin.

"We needed a name for this new threat, so the council gave them one," replied Frederick.

"Everyone! Remember what we're up against!" commanded Chrom, taking charge.

"Mya ha! They'll remember ME once I drive my axe into their… Wait… My axe. Where's my axe?! I had it a second ago!" shouted Vaike as he looked over himself before he frantically scanned the ground for his iron axe.

"Vaike, this is no time for jokes…"

"I'm serious! It's gone, but I JUST had it! It's got to be around here somewhere…"

"Keep to the rear then! The battle is nigh!"

Everybody else either palmed their faces, sweatdropped or both at Vaike's habit of misplacing his possessions before they readied their weapons to fight the undead horde.

"All right, listen up… Especially those of you who BROUGHT weapons!" commanded Frederick, glancing to a certain Shepherd before turning to the Shepherds to remind them of weapons having specific weaknesses. To Red, the explanation sounded much like that of Pokemon type matchups.

Red tossed two Pokeballs into the air.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Boss Battle!**_

"Go, Pikachu and Forretress!"

The familiar yellow mouse materialized. This time, it was accompanied by a round Pokemon that had violet tinted armor with red cannons poking out of its body. Its eyes peered from the pitch black darkness within its armor.

"Pikachu, hit the Risen with Thunder Wave! Forretress, use Spikes, Toxic Spikes and Stealth Rock all over the field!" commanded Red.

Pikachu quickly zapped the deathly creatures with weak lightning bolts. The bolts hit them, paralyzing them. The walking caveats lurched, fell to the ground, walked very slowly or did not move at all. Forretress, meanwhile, scattered debris all over the field. The Spikes and Toxic Spikes landed on the ground before blending into hit while the rubble from Stealth Rock stood amongst the tall grass, waiting for the zombies to blunder close to them.

"Red, what did you do to them?" asked Chrom.

"Oh, slowed them down with Thunder Wave. If a target gets paralyzed, it would move much more slowly; heck, it may not even move at all for several seconds," replied Red.

"What about the field?" added Robin.

"Don't worry, the stuff only hurts enemy targets. As for what they do, just watch what happens," said Red with a smirk on his face.

Soon enough, as the Risen began to march over to the Shepherds, low, muffled explosions rang out from the ground, toppling some of the undead warriors over. Some of the Risen glowed miasmic purple from the poisoning effect of Toxic Spikes. Finally, what shocked the Shepherds the most was the rubble suddenly floating into the air before homing in and slamming themselves against some of the zombies.

"Well, there you have it. It's should be much easier to bring those guys down," said Red.

The Shepherds quickly got out of their stupor and charged at the Risen (while Vaike searched for his axe).

"Maybe this could help," said Red to the fighter.

The Pokemon trainer quickly swapped some Pokemon around before tossing a Pokeball into the air.

"Go, Nosepass!"

A bulky dark blue Pokemon that was vaguely shaped like a tall human head appeared. It had a pair of stumpy legs and a pair of bulky flipper-like arms. What stood out the most – and gave the creature its name – was its large red nose.

"How's that guy gonna help the Vaike?" asked Vaike as he looked at the comically odd Pokemon.

"Nosepass, can you use your Magnet Pull ability to detect an iron axe?" asked Red to the Compass Pokemon.

"Nose," replied the Rock-type Pokemon as it turned to various directions. It almost looked as if it was sniffing the air or scanning its surroundings.

"Magnet Pull?" queried Vaike.

"It's an ability that some Pokemon like Nosepass have. It prevents Steel-type Pokemon from escaping battle. I figured it might help in searching for your axe, especially with how Nosepass's… erm, nose attracts metal objects," answered Red.

Not too far away, a woman wearing a witch's outfit with red hair and a pair of glasses arrived to the field.

"Splendid! It seems I've caught up. Now to extirpate these brutes," said the woman before she spotted a certain lost metal object.

"Hmm? Is that an axe? Why, yes it is… Perhaps someone misplaced it? I'd not thought such dereliction permissible among the Shepherds. Still, I'd be remiss to not return this implement to its owner. Perhaps along with a stern word or two of misapprobation!" she mused sternly as she picked up the metal axe.

At once the axe seemingly swung itself and pointed blade first at a specific direction, shocking the mage.

"What is this phenomenon?! …May I should move to see where it would lead me," she thought as she started walking to the source of what was causing the axe to stiffly point itself.

After a minute, she arrived at where Red and Vaike were. At once, the axe flew out of her hand and landed on and attached to Nosepass's large red triangular nose, much to Vaike and the mage's surprise.

"Nosepass," grunted the Nosepass. It seemed to be amused as it turned to each Shepherd present, showing off the axe on its nose.

"Whoa, that's my axe!" shouted Vaike.

"I wondered what manner of ignoramus would mislay their weapon. Now I know," sighed the woman, exasperated.

"Thanks, Miriel! … Er, for the axe, anyway," said Vaike, ignoring the mage's tone as he pulled the axe off of Nosepass's nose before joining the other Shepherds in taking out the Risen soldiers.

"Perhaps next time, I'll use a spell to fasten it to your hands… permanently," said Miriel with a rather venomous tone before turning to Red and his Nosepass.

"Hmmm… so that's what attracted Vaike's axe… Fascinating," she muttered while taking a good look at the Compass Pokemon before she quickly joined the Shepherds' battle.

Red followed after with his Pikachu, Forretress and Nosepass and gave the Pokemon orders to take out several of the Risen soldiers with their attacks. Before long, not a single zombie remained on the road.

"Finally, and good riddance!" sighed Chrom. "But if they're appearing this far up the Northroad…"

"Then no path is safe. We'll need to stay wary," finished Frederick.

With that, the Shepherds continued on towards Regna Ferox.

* * *

Reviews and constructive criticism are welcome!

I plan on slowing down the update rate since I'm getting pretty busy these days.


	6. Chapter 6: Over the Ramparts They Battle

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pokemon or Fire Emblem; those belong to Nintendo.

**Chapter 6:** **Over the Ramparts They Battle**

* * *

The Shepherds continued their route to Regna Ferox when they saw something in the field.

"Well, what do we have here?" asked Robin.

"Hey, is that what I think it is?" questioned Lissa.

"Hmm… it looks like a Rapidash with wings and without the flames," said Red, drawing some stares from the other Shepherds.

Robin, Red, Chrom and Lissa approached what looked like a majestic white horse with large white feathered wings. Its body was cloaked with a large decorative blue cloth and its head was covered with some armor plating. It stood and watched the Shepherds as they walked towards it.

"It's a pegasus, all right. I think it's hurt. Let's just have a look here…" declared Chrom as he stepped over to the winged equestrian.

Just as Chrom got close to the pegasus enough to examine it, said pegasus suddenly reared up with a loud neigh!

"WHOA! Down, girl! Easy there!" gasped out Chrom in surprise.

"Captain, one moment!" said Sumia as she rushed over to Chrom and the pegasus before suddenly tripping over onto the ground.

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "Shhh… Easy now, girl. I won't hurt you."**_

"Sumia! Are you all right? …Those boots of yours again?" asked Chrom.

"No! I mean, yes! I mean…" stammered Sumia before she sighed out of self-frustration.

"Well, come no closer; this beast is crazed!"

"It's okay, Captain. I can handle this… Shhh… Easy now, girl. I won't hurt you."

Sumia looked at the winged horse in the eye before slowly and surely walking to it. The pegasus did not react and remained docile towards Sumia. Sumia then gently rubbed its head before she began checking it over for injuries. The others watched in awe.

"How did she calm it so quickly?" asked an amazed Robin.

"I noticed that she maintained eye contact with the pegasus; she showed that she had nothing to hide and meant the pegasus no harm. It's quite similar to what we Pokemon trainers should do whenever we find an injured wild Pokemon," replied Red.

"That's incredible, Sumia!" exclaimed Lissa.

"I've never seen anything like it," said Chrom.

"Oh, it's nothing. Really. I just have a way with animals, I guess," said Sumia.

"I should say so!"

"You all go on ahead. I'll dress her wounds and catch up as soon as we're able."

"We can make time to wait for you."

"Thank you, Captain. But I can manage. Every moment is precious when all of Ylisse is in danger."

"Can I stay behind? I had never seen pegasus before until now – I would like to know about them!" said Red.

"Right, then. Be safe, you two," replied Chrom.

"As your command, sir," said Sumia as she and the Pokemon trainer watched the rest of the Shepherds march off along the road before they began to chat with one another about winged horses, Pokemon and flying.

**Music track:** _**Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Mt. Freeze**_

After a few hours, the landscape changed from a grassy expanse of a field to a snowy forest close to the northern mountains as the Shepherds minus Red and Sumia marched on.

"Brrrr! F-F-Frebberick! I'm f-f-freebing!" shivered Lissa.

"Stand beside my horse, milady. She'll shelter you from the wind," offered Frederick.

"So this is the fortress?" asked Robin as he looked ahead at a long and large stone building.

"Yes, the Longfort. It stretches along the border of Ylisse and Regna Ferox," replied Chrom.

"The khans have grown quite wary of foreigners. Still, don't mistake a lack of hospitality for open hostility; this simply calls for a bit of diplomacy," said Frederick.

"Negotiation's not my strong suit, but I'll do my best. Remember, everyone: your actions here reflect back upon Ylisse," said Chrom as he and his group approached the Longfort.

The group came upon a disconcerting sight as they approached the Longfort's gates.

"Trouble in the wind, milord: the Feroxi Guard is mobilizing," stated Frederick.

"What?! Why?" asked a shocked Chrom.

"Who can say? But they look ready to fly at a moment's notice. We'd best be prepared for combat, just to be safe."

The two turned to Robin for his battle plan at the Longfort. After Robin gave out his tactics to the Shepherds and made their preparations, the Shepherds assembled outside of the Longfort gates. Tension grew thick in the bitter cold air.

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "You don't know the first thing about peace. No man does!"**_

"Halt! Who goes there?!" called out a woman's voice. It came from the top of the Longfort.

"In the name of House Ylisse, I seek audience with the khans!" shouted Chrom in reply.

"Not another step, my bold lad! I've lancers at the ready!"

"Hold, milady! We are not your enemy! Exalt Emmeryn herself sent us to discuss matters of mutual interest!" shouted Frederick.

"My only interest is keeping you out of Regna Ferox, brigand!" replied the voice.

"B-brigand? Now see here—"

"You think you are the first 'Ylisseans' to try and cross our border? I have the authority to fell such impostors where they stand."

"How dare you! You are in the presence of Prince Chrom, the exalt's own blood!"

"Ha! Yes, indeed – and I'm the queen of Valm! You do realize impersonating royalty is a capital offense, yes? Mmm… perhaps we should settle this the Feroxi way. You claim to be the prince of Ylisse? Then prove it on the battlefield!"

"Rgh, Emmeryn wouldn't like this at all… Please, good lady! If you'd just listen-" pleaded Chrom.

"I've heard quite enough! Attack!" shouted the voice.

Feroxi knights standing at the roof of the Longfort quickly gathered above the gates and readied their javelins. They pointed them at the Shepherds. They were just about to throw them when they and the Shepherds heard a loud roar.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Movie 1: Real and Clones! Who is Stronger?!**_

"AGGROOOOOONNN!"

All soldiers present quickly searched the area for what caused the roar until the Feroxi soldiers standing on the Longfort rooftop noticed several snow-covered evergreen trees were being knocked down rapidly.

"What in the world is that?!" screamed Lissa when she saw what caused the roar and the tree falling.

"I've never seen anything like it before!" shouted Chrom.

The Shepherds and the Feroxi soldiers all looked at the source of the noise, which happened to be a large, strange creature. The monster was bipedal, standing at a height of over two meters. It had a tough black body with silver metal armor covering its head, back, and parts of its short yet stocky legs and arms and appeared to have sharp, metallic claws. It clearly looked heavyweight and very powerful.

"What if it's one of those Pokemon from wherever Red's from? If it is, then we'll have to be careful," said Robin.

With a roar, the armored creature hopped into the air before it crashed onto the ground, setting off a powerful quake.

"Whoa!" shouted some of the Shepherds and the Feroxi soldiers as they tried to remain steady on their feet; some toppled onto the ground.

"Okay! Change of plans! All of us will have to take that thing down!" shouted Robin.

"Right!" confirmed the Shepherds as they quickly regained their bearings and charged at the monster.

The Feroxi soldiers tacitly agreed with Robin's plan and quickly rushed in to help the Shepherds; the monster was clearly a bigger threat when compared to a group of what may be brigands or soldiers serving the Ylissean prince.

The combined forces quickly began bearing down on the wild behemoth. They threw, slashed and stabbed at it with weapons. Some spells were launched into the air at the monster, courtesy of Robin and Miriel's tomes. The constant onslaught did very little or nothing on it, especially when the monster grunted and formed a glowing green forcefield around itself that blocked a lot of attacks before it faded.

"Ugh! It shielded itself!" exclaimed Robin in frustration.

"Quickly! We must take out that monster before it can destroy the Longfort!" shouted the Feroxi commander, who was the source of the voice earlier.

The monster had no problems taking hits from the soldiers and began dishing some out on its own. It swatted away several of the Feroxi soldiers surrounding it easily with its short, thick arms. Several of the soldiers fell unconscious from the powerful blows.

"Tch! It's beating us up easily!" thought Chrom as he narrowly dodged the creature's glowing claw swipe.

"Yow! That thing is harder to beat up than Chrom is!" thought Vaike as he rushed in with his iron axe only to do no damage on the creature's armored back.

"Red, Sumia, where are you…?" thought Lissa as she frantically ran around the snow-covered battlefield to heal her comrades with her staff.

"Aggron!" shouted the creature as it opened its jaws. The inside of its mouth began to glow orange, charging up power.

"Run! Take cover, everybody!" shouted Robin as the soldiers quickly dropped to the ground or tried to find some place to hide.

At once, the monster fired a large orange energy beam out of its mouth at the Longfort. The beam connected, shattered a large portion of the wall. Large pieces of rubble began to fall. Chrom looked up to see some large boulders were hurtling down above his head; any moment later, they would crash on top of him.

"Milord, look out!" shouted Frederick.

"Chrom!" screamed Lissa.

"No…" whispered Chrom as he realized that he had no time to dodge the makeshift Rock Slide and quickly shut his eyes.

However, the rubble did not hit him. Instead, something swooped in and grabbed him before that can happen. Chrom opened his eyes to see Sumia seated in front of him and that they were on the back of a familiar pegasus.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Best Wishes: Route 4**_

"Sumia…" said Chrom.

"Better hold on tight, Captain. Could get bumpy," said Sumia.

"Uh, right."

"You'll be fine."

A different roar rang out into the air as Charizard appeared with its trainer on its back.

"Red, over there!" shouted Sumia as she pointed to the creature down below on the ground.

"Hmm… a wild Aggron? How did it get here?" asked Red.

"We don't know, but it's beating us up easily!" shouted Lissa.

"Alright, Charizard, let's land!" commanded Red to the Flame Pokemon.

Charizard roared and quickly swooped down to the Longfort gates and landed on the ground, allowing Red to disembark before facing the now-identified wild Aggron.

"ROOAARRR!" roared Charizard.

"AGGROONNN!" replied Aggron in kind.

"Alright! Charizard, let's start this off with Flamethrower!" shouted Red.

Charziard wasted no time in launching a stream of flames from its jaws at Aggron. The Flamethrower slammed into the Iron Armor Pokemon, engulfing it in flames before exploding. Aggron roared in pain from being burned.

"Whoa, look at that!" exclaimed Robin.

"Amazing…" said Frederick.

The wild Aggron quickly collected itself before concentrating. It conjured rings of what looked like floating, jagged stones around its body before it launched them at Charizard.

"Charizard, get into the air to dodge that Stone Edge!" shouted Red, knowing how effective the powerful Rock-type move was on the Fire-Flying type Pokemon.

Charizard quickly flapped its large draconic wings to fly. The Stone Edge attack from Aggron sailed harmlessly from below, hitting only the Longfort gates. Aggron opened its jaws once again, with an orange energy globe forming in it.

"Oh no, it's gonna use Hyper Beam! Charizard, get ready!" shouted Red.

Charizard responded by circling high above Aggron, waiting for it to make its move. Aggron did not disappoint by launching the orange Hyper Beam into the air at Charizard.

"Now, counter that Hyper Beam with Fire Blast!"

The Flame Pokemon stopped circling and opened its maw once again; this time, it launched what looked like a large five-pronged star made of fire. The high-powered Fire Blast slammed into the powerful Normal-type attack in a deafening explosion, accompanied by a large smokescreen.

"Charizard, into the smoke!" shouted Red.

"What is Red trying to do?" wondered Robin as he watched Charizard fly into the giant smoke cloud.

Aggron eyed the smokescreen, warily waiting for Charizard to emerge.

"Charizard, Air Slash attack, let's go!" called out Red.

At once, a blade of wind flew out of the smoke cloud, dispersing it. The Air Slash sailed through the air into Aggron's face, causing said Rock-Steel type Pokemon to flinch.

"Perfect, an opening! Hit it with Flare Blitz, Charizard!"

The smoke dispersed further as Charizard, cloaked in red-hot flames, flew out of it. The dragon-like Pokemon rammed its flaming body into Aggron, sending the heavyweight sliding right into a large evergreen tree. Some snow covering the tree's branches and needles fell on top of the Pokemon.

"Now, finish it with Focus Blast!"

Charizard opened its mouth for one final time and conjured and launched a glowing blue energy orb at Aggron. The Fighting-type attack connected, exploding on Aggron for super-effective damage. Aggron slumped against the tree, fainted.

"Wow, his Charizard actually took it out," said Robin, awed.

"Oh man, Teach is so itchin' for a fight against one of your Pokemon, Red," called out Vaike.

"But didn't you get your ass handed to ya by that other one over there, pal?" asked Sully mockingly.

"But… but that was a… warm up! Yes, it was a warm up!" stammered the fighter to the cavalier.

"If only I could be confident like he is," thought Sumia as she looked over to the Pokemon trainer while rubbing her pegasus's head with her hand.

Red reached into his yellow backpack to pull out a Pokeball. The Pokeball was different in color as it was black on the top half and white on the bottom half. A yellow "U" was on the black section of it.

"Go, Ultra Ball!" called out Red as he tossed the black-and-white Pokeball into the air at the defeated Aggron.

The button on the Ultra Ball tapped Aggron on its armored head and opened up to suck in the Iron Armor Pokemon in a blob of red light. After the energy was sucked up, the Ultra Ball closed itself and landed on the snow-covered ground and began to wobble. The wobbling lasted for a few seconds before it stopped and the button on the Pokeball glowed red for a second while it beeped, confirming a successful capture.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: To Be Continued…**_

"Alright, I caught an Aggron!" exclaimed Red as he rushed over to pick up the now-occupied Pokeball.

"Wow, congratulations!" cheered Lissa as she and the other Shepherds and Feroxi troops rushed over.

"What a relief," said Stahl.

"My, a battle worthy of the bards to tell," stated Virion.

"Hey, you guys should thank Sumia and her pegasus; if she didn't get here on time, Chrom would've gotten flattened," said Red, pointing to said new pegasus knight while recalling Charizard.

"I'm relieved that I made it in time," said Sumia, blushing from the recognition and thanks.

"A thousand apologies, Prince Chrom. I truly took you for brigand impostors. But no frauds could ever wage a battle against that monster as you and your group just have! I will send word of your arrival to the capital and escort you there personally," said the Feroxi commander as she walked up to the group and bowed respectfully. She had short, boyish blonde hair and was in full armor.

"That would be most appreciated, thank you," said Chrom, relieved that the ordeal was over.

The blonde commander walked off with the Feroxi soldiers, leaving the Shepherds alone.

"Amazing, her whole demeanor changed," said Robin.

"In Ferox, strength speaks louder than words. Red and his Charizard just proved that. Anyways, I should've known better than to overestimate the value of diplomacy here," replied Frederick.

"So can we get going, Chrom?" asked Lissa, impatient to leave the bitter cold after the heat of battle.

"Yes, it's not getting any warmer," replied her older brother as they and the Shepherds followed after the Feroxi soldiers through the Longfort.

* * *

Sorry for the long wait, everybody! I've been busy with school and playing Fire Emblem Awakening. I've finally beaten the main story and have been grinding to max out characters and record support conversations.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter as it took a long time to write out.

Reviews and constructive criticism are welcome!

4/1/13 (UPDATE): Due to an extreme lack of response, updating time will probably be slowed down even further as I may as well write a new story to upload on FF. I will continue to write for this fanfiction but it will be a long time before it would be actually written, let alone uploaded. Popular response can speed up the updates. Thank you, readers who have reviewed the first 5 chapters and have followed or favorited the fanfic.

4/27/13 (UPDATE): Chapter 7 is in progress!

5/1/13 (UPDATE): Uploaded cover image; credit to Bulbapedia for providing the image.


	7. Chapter 7: VS Pokemon Champion? Not!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or Fire Emblem; those belong to Nintendo.**

* * *

**Chapter 7: VS Pokemon Champion? Not!**

Chrom and his companions followed Raimi into what looked like a large stone coliseum. Inside, they arrived at what looked like a large, airy throne room that is covered with a large indigo rug. Raimi turned to the group.

"Prince Chrom, please wait here while I summon the khan," she said.

"Of course," replied the Ylissean prince.

With that, the Feroxi commander left the room, leaving the Shepherds alone.

"The khan is away?" asked Robin.

"Out training, I'd wager. The khans of Ferox prefer battle to politics," explained Chrom. "Or rather, battle IS their politics."

"Warrior ruler, eh? I can picture him now: a giant of a man with unparalleled thew, his broad chest covered in hair, heheh…" murmured the tactician.

"Am I now? …Please, do go on!" rang out a voice into the throne room. It clearly belonged to a woman.

"Huh?" uttered Robin.

A woman with tanned skin and blonde hair tied into a ponytail walked into the room. She wore maroon and white armor. But unlike Frederick's armor, her armor was segmented much more, allowing for ease in movement. Attached to her left arm was a large maroon shield.

"You're the -?! Er, that is to say… the khan, I presume?" stuttered out a surprised Chrom.

"One of them, yes – the East-Khan. My name is Flavia," said the woman. "I apologize for the troubles at the border, Prince Chrom; you are welcome in Regna Ferox. I also wish to thank you and your group for dealing with the monster when you arrived."

"Thank you, but I'm confident that we can put that misunderstanding behind us. Is it true bandits are posing as Ylisseans have been ransacking your border villages?"

"Yes! Those Plegian dogs! We found documents proving as much on the corpse of one of their captains. Plegia must see some benefit in raising tensions between your kingdom and ours."

"Damn them!" cursed out Chrom. "Forgive me, Your Grace. That was… inadequately put."

"Ha! Damn them and damn delicacy!" laughed Flavia. "Here in Ferox, we appreciate plain speech."

The others listened and watched with respect and amusement.

"In that case, you should have a word with your damn border guards…" said Chrom.

"… Ha ha! Now that's Feroxi diplomacy! Yes, I like you already. I know why you came, Prince. But regrettably, I cannot provide any Feroxi troops for Ylisse."

"What?! Why not?!" burst out Lissa.

"I lack the authority," replied Flavia, sadly shaking her head.

"Forgive me, but I don't understand. Aren't you the khan?" queried Chrom.

"As I said, I'm ONE of the khans," answered Flavia. "In Ferox, the khans of east and west hold a tournament every few years. The victor acquires full sovereignty over both kingdoms – and that means they have the final say when it comes to forging alliances. The West-Khan won the last tournament, you see, so…"

"So are we to receive no aid at all?" asked Chrom, finishing her sentence.

"Not if you always give up so easily! The next tournament is nigh, you see, and I am in need of champions."

"What does that have to do with us?"

"The captain of my border guard informs me that your Shepherds are quite capable, especially in dealing with the monster. Perhaps you would consider representing the East in the upcoming tournament? If you win and I become khan, then I will grant your alliance."

"I would have assumed Ylisseans had no place in Feroxi traditions."

"Ha! On the contrary, the khans themselves do not fight – they choose champions to represent them. Otherwise, our land will be rife with blood feuds and dead khans! We don't involve comrades or kin for the same reason. Overtime, it was decided the tournament should be fought by outsiders… although the outsiders have never included foreign royalty… that I know of! Ha! Regardless, it is your choice to make."

"There is no choice, East-Khan. My people are desparate. We face not only Plegia's constant attacks, but also now the added threat of the Risen. If fighting for you is the quickest way to an alliance, then we'll take up our steel."

"Ha ha! Oh, I do like you, Prince Chrom! I do hope you survive the tournament! Come, I'll show where the tournament is held. But be wary! I hear an equally capable swordsman champions the West-Khan."

"He shall be defeated by Ylisse's necessity."

"Well-spoken again! I look forward to seeing if you're equally skilled with a blade!" laughed Flavia as she led the Shepherds out of the room to the arena.

Several minutes later, they arrived to some doors.

"These doors will take you to the arena. Prepare yourself," said Flavia, leaving the arena lobby.

At once, Robin began making preparations for the fellow Shepherds, asking some to stay so as to be participants in the tournament, while the others made their way to the stadium bleachers. Chrom, Robin, Frederick and his steed, Lissa, Red, Sumia and her pegasus then faced the doors and entered the arena.

The bleachers were filled to the brim with the citizens of Regna Ferox, all excited to watch the tournament battle unfold. Many can be seen laughing, talking, pointing at each other or at the Shepherds, or placing bets. Red can see the other Shepherds taking front-row seats in the bleachers. He can also see a large, muscular and bald dark-skinned man watching them closely from his own front-row seat. He wore a black eyepatch over his left eye. Sitting next to him was a raven-haired man wearing a blue tunic. He was also watching the participating Shepherds with the same intensity the bald man had. Sitting at the other side of the bald man was Flavia. Red can only guess that the eye-patched man was the West-Khan. The man stood up from his seat just as the door from the other side of the arena opened.

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: Rival (Intro)**_

Entering the arena were a familiar masked swordsman and a few fighters, knights and mages.

"Eh? Him again?" whispered Red to himself.

"Chrom! Look!" shouted Lissa.

"I see him…" said Chrom calmly.

Marth remained silent, unfazed by the sudden attention.

"Marth! One question, before we begin?" called out Chrom to the masked teenager.

Marth said nothing; he only focused his attention on Chrom.

"…Fine then," conceded Chrom. "Our swords can speak for us!"

Up in the stands, the man with the eyepatch, seeing that both parties of champions were ready, raised his arms. At once, the bleachers began to quiet down with a few hisses of "Shh! It's starting!"

"Let the tournament begin!" decreed the man before he sat down back on his seat.

Down in the arena, Chrom and Marth approached one another. Chrom drew his Falchion from its sheathe, twirled it around with his wrists before he got himself into position with the Falchion held by both of his hands in front of him, elbows locked. Marth mirrored his actions when he drew out his sword, which eerily looked like Chrom's. Chrom easily noticed the similarity.

"Where did you get that?" gasped Chrom.

Marth did not answer.

"There's no way…" groaned Chrom, gritting his teeth.

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: Rival**_

Chrom quickly charged at Marth. Marth prepared to block Chrom's attack but he looked up as he watched Chrom jumped high into the air. With his Falchion in both hands over his head, Chrom tucked himself into a ball and rapidly rolled down through the air like a circular chainsaw. Marth quickly brought up his sword and blocked Chrom's slash just as the Ylissean prince landed on his feet.

With a grunt, Marth barely parried Chrom's Falchion and immediately put Chrom on the defensive with a slew of his own sword slashes. The sword duel was in a stalemate as neither swordsman landed a hit on one another – each slash was blocked or parried. Sparks flew each time the swords clanged against one another.

"Tell me, who taught you to fight like that?" grunted Chrom as he ducked from an aggressive downward sword slash from Marth before blocking another strike from Marth's sword.

Just like the other sword slashes, the deadlock stalemated with neither side willing to give in. Marth broke it by parrying away Chrom's sword in a small flurry of sparks. Both Chrom and Marth were shunted away from each other by the force of Marth's maneuver. They quickly twirled their swords with their wrists, mirroring one another. With a battle cry from each, they quickly lunged at each other.

Their swords slashed against each other with a loud CLANG before their wielders slid to a stop. Chrom looked back just in time to see Marth jumping high into the air, mimicking Chrom's opening attack. He then sidestepped just in time to hear Marth yell out his answer of "My father!" before the masked swordsman landed on the ground. Marth got up and held up his sword, pointing it at Chrom, ready for more. Chrom decided to regroup with the five other Shepherds present in the arena. Marth quickly retreated to the other side of the arena and watched the Shepherds from afar.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Movie 1: Satoshi's Battle Decision**_

"Robin, what should we do?" asked Chrom.

"Hmmm… Marth is definitely a gifted swordsman and his men look capable as well. We should mind our distance," replied Robin before he turned to Red. "Do you have any Pokemon that can help us here?"

Red looked around the arena. He mentally noted that, along with Marth, there were four fighters, two knights and two mages in the field. He gave an excited grin when he looked back to Robin. The grin also caused Sumia and Lissa to blush a little.

"I got two Pokemon in mind: one for taking out the underlings and one for Marth!" replied Red.

"Alright, Sumia, Lissa, you two go help Red. I'll go with Frederick and Chrom," said Robin.

The two girls blushed and they found out that they were to be with Red for the battle.

The six Shepherds quickly split up into two groups of three on Robin's orders before they rushed off in opposite directions to fight Marth's men.

For Robin's group, they were having a relatively easy time with the soldiers. Frederick with his armored steed had no problem protecting Chrom and Robin from incoming attacks. Robin easily shot down the mage of the group by frying him with a Thunder spell. Chrom, with his veteran swordsmanship, easily disarmed and dispatched the axe-wielding fighters. The enemy knight quickly fell to the combined might of Chrom, Frederick and Robin.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Fight! Elite Four**_

Meanwhile, Red drew out a Pokeball and threw it into the air.

"Okay! Go, Blaziken!" he called out.

The Pokeball opened up to release a blob of white light, drawing numerous gasps from the audience.

"Did you see that?!"

"What happened?"

"What did that boy do?"

"What magic is this?" said the bald eye-patch wearing man.

"Oh, what's this now? …And here I thought that boy looked defenseless earlier," wondered Flavia.

"What did he just send out?" asked Vaike.

"Probably something that kicks arse hard," replied Sully.

"Oh boy, it looks tall!" exclaimed Stahl.

Marth looked unfazed since he had his mask on but he actually raised an eyebrow at the sight.

Standing in front of Red was a bipedal Pokemon standing nearly two meters tall. It was mostly red in color though it was yellow below its knees and had gray talon-like forearms. While its body did suggest modest upper body strength, it did suggest excellent lower body strength because of its somewhat thin arms and long, powerful legs. It also had what looked like white hair giving it the air of a veteran fighter. Its appearance also drew some whispers from the audience.

"What's that thing?"

"That's it; I'm putting my money on Flavia."

"Basilio's champions are toast."

Red ignored the whispers and got ready to issue orders to his Blaziken.

"Use Flamethrower on that fighter!" he called out.

"Blaze!" responded the Blaze Pokemon as it opened its vaguely beak-like jaw to shoot out a large stream of flames at the targeted fighter. The fighter tried to dodge but Blaziken only had to turn its head to catch him in flames.

"GAAAAHHH!" screamed the fighter before he quickly succumbed to the flames, unconscious.

The remaining mage from the opposing team snuck behind Red's back and readied a Thunder spell.

"Look out!" screeched Robin from nearby.

The spell did not connect. Sumia, on her pegasus mount, swooped in to block the attack with her iron lance just as Red turned around after Robin's warning.

"Whew, thanks for the save!" said Red.

Sumia beamed at Red before she went on the offensive on the mage. Because of the pegasus knight's resistance to magic, Sumia's aerial assault easily took out her magical opponent.

"Looks like they'll be fine," said Frederick.

"Yes, they're working well as a team," added Chrom.

"Hi Jump Kick on that knight!" shouted Red.

With a battle cry, Blaziken rushed over to the heavily armored opponent, who quickly raised his shield up to block the blow. However, Blaziken jumped high into the air, slamming its knee into the knight's shield. The force of the powerful kick sent the knight flying into the wall, leaving a spider web-like crater in it. The crash earned the knight many sympathetic groans. The knight fell out of the crater onto the ground, prostrate and unconscious with a faint and painful groan of his own.

Meanwhile, Sumia managed to defeat the remaining fighter, but not without taking a hit from the fighter's axe. Lissa rushed over to heal her with her staff. Red returned Blaziken to its Pokeball before he, Sumia and Lissa regrouped with Chrom, Robin and Frederick.

Chrom and the five Shepherds approached Marth, who was the only champion remaining for the West-Khan. The Ylissean prince walked up to face the masked swordsman once more.

"Who is your father, sir?" asked Chrom.

"I've said enough for one day, sir," replied Marth.

"Hmph. Is that how it is? Lissa owes you her life, and for that you have my gratitude. But within these walls, I represent the East-Khan and the interests of Ylisse. I can't promise to stay my blade, but I vow not to shame you."

"Heh, never expected such youthful arrogance... We shall see who shames who!"

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem: Sacred Stones: The Battle Must Be Won**_

At once, Chrom and Marth took off again with swords at the ready. The twin swords clanged and clashed against each other. Sparks flew in tiny fireworks. It looked to be a very graceful yet deadly dance.

After a while, Chrom retreated. Neither he nor Marth landed a clean hit on each other; the battle was once again a stalemate.

"Ugh, that Marth is tough – he's matching me for every hit I try to land!" he groaned.

"Red, do you still have that Pokemon for Marth?" asked Robin.

"Got it right here," replied the Pokemon trainer. "Let's see Marth fight a Pokemon swordsman!"

Red tossed the Pokeball into the air, making it open up and release a blob of white light. The light faded to reveal a humanoid Pokemon. It had a green upper body and a white lower body. It had a disk-like hip, a pair of strong legs and a red fin-like horn that seemed to pierce through its green chest. Its head appeared to wear a green helmet with a large blue fin over its white head. It also appeared to have sharp, extended green elbows behind its arms. Red held up his Pokedex and played out the Pokemon's entry.

"Gallade, the Blade Pokemon and the evolved form of a male Kirlia. A Psychic and Fighting type. A master of courtesy and swordsmanship, when protecting someone, he extends his elbows as if they were swords and fights savagely," beeped the Pokedex with its computerized voice.

Marth raised an eyebrow at the sight of Gallade and at its Pokedex entry. To him, Gallade will be an interesting opponent.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Movie 11: Great Air Battle!**_

"Let us fight with honor. May the best soldier win!" said the masked swordsman to the Pokemon.

"Lade!" replied Gallade with a short nod. He then waited for Red's orders.

"Let's start off with Swords Dance!" commanded Red.

"Lade," said Gallade before his forearms glowed purple with his elbows extending in length. He began to move them around in a hypnotizing manner. His audience was mesmerized by his ritual-like dance. However, nobody but Red knew the effects of Swords Dance. Marth tensed, ready for whatever Gallade is going to strike him with.

Gallade finished the dance and locked eyes with Marth (though Marth is wearing a mask). His eyes had a fiery look. The two combatants stood still, waiting for one another to make the first attacking move.

"Use Psycho Cut!" shouted Red, deciding to end the stare down.

At once, Gallade sprang into action. His forearms glowed blue before his elbows extended in length. He then charged at Marth. Marth responded by using the Falchion look-a-like to parry away Gallade's two psychically charged elbows before backflipping away. The masked swordsman then charged at Gallade, ready to hit him with a powerful slash attack.

"He's fast!" thought Red.

"Teleport out of there quickly and then use Fury Cutter back-to-back!" he then shouted.

"Teleport?" wondered some of the onlookers.

"Gallade!" called out the Psychic-Fighting type. His eyes glowed blue. At the last second, right before Marth could hit Gallade, Gallade disappeared in a flash of blue light, causing Marth to stumble. Then Gallade reappeared behind Marth's back and immediately slashed him with his extended elbows glowing red.

Before Gallade could land another devastating Fury Cutter, Marth performed a quick backhanded swing behind himself. The sword struck home, slamming itself right into Gallade's chest, sending the Pokemon flying.

"Gallaaaaade!" screamed the Blade Pokemon in shock and pain.

"Hang in there, Gallade! Get back at him with Drain Punch!" assured Red.

Gallade readjusted himself before he slammed into the arena wall. He landed with both feet on the wall before he kicked off of it like a missile. As he rushed to Marth, the hand area of his forearm began to glow a bright green. Marth got ready to block the attack, but Gallade ducked under the sword and slammed his fist into Marth's abdomen.

"Gah!" grunted Marth painfully.

"Wow," said Chrom in awe. "He landed a lot of harsh blows on Marth without too much trouble."

"Those are some impressive tactics," commented Robin. "Particularly that Teleport maneuver – I wonder what we could do with a skill like that."

"Look, Gallade's bruise doesn't look as bad now!" pointed out Lissa. Sure enough, the bruise from Marth's backhand swing on Gallade's chest faded somewhat after the Drain Punch attack.

Up in the bleachers, the Shepherds were also in a similar state of awe.

"Red really knows his stuff about Pokemon all right," said Stahl.

"I really need to learn from his Pokemon," said Sully.

"Oh come on! This waiting for the Vaike to battle one of Red's Pokemon is killing me!" screamed Vaike.

"Jeez, they make it so easy to get anybody's attention," murmured Kellam quietly.

In the arena, Marth began to feel unsteady on his feet. The damage from Gallade's attacks had taken on a toll on him. Red decided to finish the battle at once.

"End this with Close Combat!" he shouted.

Gallade blurred in front of Marth. Marth weakly held up his sword once again in an attempt to block the oncoming attack. However, Gallade attacked in a manner Marth did not expect: he unleashed a furious barrage of punches, elbow slashes and the occasional kicks onto him. The high speed of the repeated attacks easily went past Marth's defending blade. After several seconds, the Pokemon swordsman ended his combo attack with a fierce punch. The punch was powerful enough to send Marth flying right into the arena wall with his back.

"I've been bested…" thought Marth before he bounced off the wall onto the ground.

"Impressive… if not surprising," he gasped out before the blissful black world of unconsciousness enveloped him.

The Shepherds, representing the East-Khan of Regna Ferox, won the tournament battle.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Route 3**_

Back in the throne room, after the battle ended, Flavia congratulated the Shepherds.

"Well fought! You have my respect. And, perhaps more to the point, you have your alliance. I will provide Ylisse with the soldiers she needs," she said.

"Truly? Thank you, East-Khan," said Chrom.

"I should thank you! It feels like ages since I've held full power. Come, my new friends! Tonight, we celebrate!"

Flavia excitedly ran out of the throne room just before another person entered. Red noticed it was the bald man with the eye patch.

"Bah! Any excuse for a party and Flavia jumps on it..." said the man.

"I'm sorry, have we met?" asked a confused Chrom.

"I'm Basilio, the West-Khan you so rudely removed from power!" shouted the man in reply. "You're handy with a sword, boy. I thought for sure I'd picked the stronger man. However, that red-hat boy of yours and those strange creatures seriously took the cake for power! If I had him as my champion, I'd practically be set for life!"

"What do you know about him?"

"You mean that 'Marth'? Bah! He's just some sellsword with delusions of grandeur. All I know is that he turned up one eve and knocked my old champion flat. It was love at first sight, and I'm generally too old for such things! Baha! Anyway, he's gone now. Up and fled the moment he recovered from that beating he got earlier."

"We should leave soon, milord," said Frederick to Chrom. "The exalt will want this news of our new alliance immediately."

"Right as always, Frederick," replied the Ylissean Prince.

"Hold, boy. Before you go, I have a little present for you," said Basilio before he looked to the doorway and nodded.

A man entered the room. Red noticed that he was the man with raven-colored hair and the blue tunic who watched the battle with Basilio. The man looked at Basilio and at the Shepherds silently.

"This is Lon'qu, my former champion. Not much for talking, mind you, but he's peerless with a sword. As good as Marth, in my mind. To be honest, I can't figure out how Marth bested him so quickly… but then again, who cares? That green and white swordsman easily kicked Marth's arse back there," said Basilio.

"Well, I've trained a lot of my Pokemon – you can easily see the results in battle," explained Red to the West-Khan.

"Bwahaha!" laughed Basilio. "I should get you to train up my men or better yet, get you to become my champion!"

"Marth beat that guy? But he looks so big and strong…" gasped Lissa before she approached Lon'qu to get a closer look at him.

Lon'qu visibly recoiled at Lissa's approach, taking a step back.

"Away, woman!" he shouted.

"Hey! Wh-what did I say?!" shouted Lissa.

"Ba ha ha! Let's just say that ladies tend to put Lon'qu on edge," laughed Basilio. "Nonetheless, he is capable. Perhaps he even has the makings of a khan. Consider him West Ferox's contribution to the Ylissean cause."

"You're certain about this?" asked Chrom.

"Yes, yes; he's your man now," confirmed Basilio.

"And Lon'qu, you have no objections?"

"He gives orders. I stab people. I think our roles are clear," Lon'qu replied curtly.

"…All right then. Welcome aboard."

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Yeesh, this chapter was a doozy to write up! I hope you enjoyed the battle sequences! And once again, reviews and constructive criticism are welcome (I'm getting little to none of them at all...)

Also, if there are any Pokémon you want to see in action in this crossover fanfiction, let me know through your reviews and PMs! I'll try and see if I could get them into the story if possible!


	8. Chapter 8: Barrack Battles! (1)

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or Fire Emblem; those belong to Nintendo.**

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**Chapter 8: Barrack Battles! (1)**

A few days later, the Shepherds arrived back to Ylisstol. At Ylisstol's castle, Chrom brought Emmeryn the news.

"...Then Regna Ferox will support Ylisse? Thank you, Chrom. I knew sending you was the right choice," stated Emmeryn proudly.

"You should see Ferox's warriors! Perhaps now our people will be safe from those blasted Plegians and Risen!" proclaimed Chrom, elated.

"You all should go rest; you and the Shepherds deserve it."

At the barracks outside of Ylisstol, there was a gathering. It consisted of the Shepherds all watching Vaike and Red.

"All right, Red. The Vaike's gonna challenge one of your Pokemon!" Vaike boasted.

"Hmm… any preferences?" asked Red. "Any sort of Pokemon in mind?"

"Teach doesn't care what you pick – I can take anything you send out! If I can take out one of your Pokemon, I should be able to beat Chrom!"

Red pondered for a few minutes before he took out his Pokedex to swap Pokemon. He then tossed the Pokemon's Pokeball into the air.

"Let's go, Ninjask!" he shouted.

In a burst of familiar white light came yet another new Pokemon. It had a gold-colored head with a pair of red compound-eyes. It also had a black body with grey insectoid arms. Its black legs were tucked in its small body. It had a pair of an insect's wings with small short bands of red on them.

"Heh, that looked nothing more than an oversized bug!" laughed Vaike as he took in the sight of the Ninja Pokemon. "Looks like Teach just got tenure!"

"This I've got to see," said Sully.

"I wonder what it can do…" wondered Stahl.

"…Since you challenged me, you make the first move," said Red to Vaike.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Boy Appears**_

"Enter the Vaike!" crowed Vaike as he quickly performed a straightforward charge, axe flailing at Ninjask.

"Don't move, Ninjask!" called Red. Ninjask merely remained in the air.

"This is going to be easy!" bragged Vaike as he closed in on the Bug-Flying type Pokemon. He cocked his arm back, readying to swing his iron axe.

"Now dodge!"

"Huh?"

Vaike stumbled over as his axe swing missed, hitting only thin air and the grassy ground. Ninjask quickly flew behind him and waited for Red's orders. Vaike got up to see the cicada Pokemon unharmed.

"Now, Agility!" called Red.

"Nin! Nin! Nin! Nin!" said Ninjask as it buzzed all over the field in bursts of speed. It flew around so quickly that everybody watching had a difficult time seeing it.

"Holy crap! It's fast!" exclaimed a shocked Sully.

"Hmm? Did it perform the art of teleportation?" asked Miriel before squinting behind her spectacles. "Oh, it's merely traveling at extraordinarily high speeds."

"Help! I'm giddy!" groaned Stahl as he kept turning his head around to see where Ninjask practically flashed to next.

"Where'd it go now?" asked Kellam, who got ignored as usual.

"What did it do?!" shrieked Vaike.

"Oh, I had it raise its already high movement speed by using the move Agility. It also has the ability Speed Boost which allows it to raise its speed passively over time," explained Red. "Ninjask is famous for being one of the fastest known Pokemon in the world."

"The fastest…? My, its speed is practically legendary!" said Virion.

Lissa and Sumia were silent; they were in awe.

Vaike resumed charging at Ninjask with his axe, but Ninjask was too fast for him. Ninjask did not remain still for too long as it always seemed to blur to a new spot each time Vaike swung his axe at it.

"Fury Cutter!" called Red.

Suddenly, a flash of white and red flew by Vaike, leaving a large scratch mark on the fighter. The process continued: Vaike kept trying to see where Ninjask flew to while Ninjask left slash marks on Vaike when it did a quick fly-by. Eventually Vaike grew exhausted and fell over from the accumulated pain of the numerous Fury Cutter attacks.

"Ugh… Teach will demand a rematch, Red," groaned Vaike.

Later, Chrom arrived to see the Shepherds training hard. Each of them was sparring against one of Red's Pokemon and was becoming exhausted. Vaike was busy resting after being beaten by Red's Ninjask.

"Let's take a break," said Chrom. "We really need one after that long journey."

After Red recalled his Pokemon, the Shepherds went on their separate ways in the camp.

A while later, in the mess hall, Stahl took a seat at one of the tables; he was ready to eat when realized that he forgot to pick up an additional dish. He left the mess hall, leaving the food on the table.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Spinda Cafe**_

A few minutes later, the green-armored cavalier came back to the mess hall just to find that his food had disappeared.

"Hmmm… Somebody must have been hungry and just picked up my food by mistake," chuckled Stahl. "I'll go get some more…"

He left the mess hall to get more food and then returned. The result was the same: the food he left onto the table was gone as well.

"What the-?!"

Stahl looked around the tabletop before he checked underneath the table. To his surprise, there were crumbs and circular footprints that clearly did not belong to a human on the ground.

"Where did my food go?!"

The shout was so loud that it attracted attention from the other Shepherds nearby. Red was the first to rush into the mess hall.

"What happened?" asked the Pokemon trainer.

"Somebody or something took my food!" groaned Stahl. "And now I'm starving…"

"Now that you mention it, some of my food disappeared too," added Sully.

"Ugh, some of my candies are gone," cried Lissa.

"Even the some of the pegasus feed is gone," said Sumia.

"Well, we can't let the camp starve. What should we do?" asked Frederick.

Stahl then pointed out the footprints to Red. Red took out his Pokedex examined the footprints closely for a few minutes. He eventually looked up.

"What did you find out?" asked Chrom.

"Those footprints most likely belong to a wild Pokemon," he declared. "And I think I know which one it is."

Red went outside of the camp to one of the nearby trees. The Shepherds followed after him. The Pokemon trainer reached into his yellow backpack and drew out what looked like a jar of golden honey and a large paintbrush.

"What are you going to do with that?" asked Lissa, curious.

"This," replied Red as he opened up the jar and dipped the brush into the honey. With the paintbrush evenly coated with honey, Red slathered the honey on the bark of the tree. A sweet fragrant from the honey began to waft into the air.

"In the Sinnoh region, some trainers cover some of the trees with honey so they can lure certain wild Pokemon to fight and capture," explained Red, gesturing to the honey-covered bark. "It should attract the thief after a while so let's wait a bit."

Once again, the Shepherds went on their separate ways while Red hid in some nearby bushes.

Over an hour later, Red noticed that some bushes nearby began to rustle about. The bushes parted slightly to reveal a small rotund and fat Pokemon. It had teal colored fur with a beige belly. Its stubby feet were hidden underneath its shaggy fur. It also had a pair of large triangular ears, wide eyes and stubby yet meaty arms. Its head was teal from the upper jaw while its lower jaw was beige colored.

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "The Vaike never forgets! I just don't always remember."**_

"Munchlax!" said the Pokemon as it sniffed the air before scuttling towards the honey-covered tree. It used its chubby hand to scoop up some of the honey and stuffed it into its mouth. It was obviously very pleased with itself. "Munch munch munch munch…"

Red got out of the bushes and called over the other Shepherds. Munchlax looked up to see Red after hearing him. Red approached the Munchlax just as the other Shepherds arrived.

"Munch?" uttered the Big Eater Pokemon.

"Well, here's our little food thief," stated Red as he kneeled down to Munchlax's level.

"Aw, it's cute," said Lissa before she kneeled down as well to pet the Munchlax.

"So that little guy ate my food…?" moaned Stahl as his stomach grumbled again.

"So what is it?" asked Kellam who once again was ignored by everybody but Red.

"That, Kellam, is a Munchlax," replied Red as he took out his Pokedex and searched for Munchlax's entry.

"Munchlax, the Big Eater Pokemon. A Normal-type. It wolfs down its weight in food once a day, swallowing food whole with almost no chewing. It also hides food under its long body hair. However, in its desperation to gulp down food, it forgets about the food it has hidden under its fur," beeped the Pokedex.

"So… how much does it typically weigh?" asked Stahl, curious as to how much the baby Pokemon eats a day.

"Let's see… it weighs around a hundred-five kilograms," replied Red, drawing gasps from the other Shepherds.

"WHAT?!" shrieked the other Shepherds.

"Aw hells," swore Sully. "That little guy is an even bigger glutton than Stahl is!"

"What should we do with it?" asked Frederick. "We can't let it run amok here."

"Well, Munchlax aren't known to attack others without being provoked. In fact, they're pretty friendly though a little hyperactive," said Red. "They're just known to be very hungry and eat a lot of food. Stealing food to feed itself is definitely something a Munchlax would do."

"Well, knowing Pokemon and how strong they are, I wouldn't mind too much about us keeping it," said Robin. "But we do need to keep an eye on food."

"What sort of food would a Munchlax eat?" asked Sumia as she joined Lissa in petting the little Pokemon. "After all, it did eat some of the pegasus feed."

"Munchlax are not picky eaters," replied Red. "They can pretty much eat almost anything – you can even give them rotten or moldy food and they'll still be fine."

"Well, there's somebody who can appreciate a certain somebody's 'cooking,'" laughed Vaike derisively, who had just recovered.

Sully glared at Vaike.

"Let's keep it!" cried Lissa. "After all, I got some pies and nobody to try them with!"

Red turned to the Pokemon and asked: "Would you like to stay with us?"

Munchlax looked at Red for a moment before it raised its fat arms up into the air.

"Munchlax munch!" it cheered.

"Great. How about a battle?" Red asked.

"Munch!" replied the Pokemon before it readied itself for battle.

The Shepherds all spread out to give Red and the Munchlax room to battle in. Red exchanged a Pokemon in his party for another one and then faced Munchlax.

"You ready, Munchlax?" asked Red as he held up a Pokeball.

"Munch!" answered Munchlax, pumping its arms excitedly.

"Alright, let's go, Scyther!"

Red tossed the Pokeball into the air, making the spherical device release a blob of light. The light faded to reveal a Pokemon that resembled a large green praying mantis. True to its name, each of its arms carried a large blade. It also had a pair of insectoid wings.

"Hmm… interesting…" muttered Lon'qu who had immediately focused his attention on the Mantis Pokemon upon said Pokemon's appearance, taking in the sight of its twin blades.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Fight! Trainer (Johto)**_

Munchlax, after taking a few seconds to get a good look at Red's Scyther, made the first move by charging at Scyther. It reached its full speed before it suddenly jumped into the air spreading its short limbs out. It was ready to flop on top of Scyther from the air.

"That's Body Slam!" warned Red. "Dodge it!"

Scyther obeyed the command by swiftly sidestepping its opponent's belly flop. Munchlax landed on the ground and quickly got up.

"Use False Swipe!"

Scyther charged at Munchlax with blades at the ready. Once it got close to the Big Eater Pokemon, the Bug-Flying type Pokemon landed a heavily restrained attack, striking it with the backs of its blades. However, Munchlax grabbed Scyther and threw it away from itself.

"Scyyyyth!" screeched Scyther in surprise.

"Ack, it got it with Fling," said Red as he watched Scyther sail into a tree. "Don't let it get to you! Use X-Scissor!"

Scyther recovered and was soon flying back through the air. It crossed its blades in an "X" formation. Its blades glowed as Scyther approached Munchlax. The blades crisscrossed each other, slashing the Normal type Pokemon hard. Munchlax was shunted away from Scyther by the force of the blow.

Munchlax got up and started to wave its fingertips, much akin to a certain musical device.

"Munchlax munchlax munchlax…" chanted the baby Pokemon.

"What is it doing now?" asked Sumia.

"That's Metronome. If it uses it, then there's no telling what will happen," replied Red grimly. "Scyther, use your Double Team!"

Scyther, to the amazement of the other Shepherds present, flashed out what looked like clones from its body. The illusionary clones continued to appear until a full circle of them surrounded Munchlax. Munchlax, who was still waving its fingers, became dreadfully confused; it was having a hard time finding the real Scyther.

"So… many…" remarked Stahl in awe, getting dizzy again.

"Munch!" shouted Munchlax as it stopped waving its fingers and pointed them at one of the Scyther. A bright glow engulfed the field quickly before it faded just as fast. All of a sudden, Munchlax opened its mouth to unleash a giant white fireball at one of the Scyther. The "Scyther" happened to be an illusionary image that was dispelled by the fireball. The fireball sailed through and exploded upon one of the nearby trees. The white flames quickly exhausted themselves, leaving behind a black charred tree.

"By the gods, what was that?" gasped Frederick. He suddenly had what looked like a hungry look in his eyes when he saw the power of the white fireball.

"Overheat," answered Red. "A very powerful Fire-type attack that gets weaker after repeated use. Apparently, Munchlax's Metronome randomly selected that move. It's a good thing Scyther avoided that with Double Team or it would have been extra crispy."

"Oh come on! I'm starving here! Must you mention 'extra crispy?!'" groaned Stahl upon hearing Red's explanation on Munchlax's Overheat attack.

"Alright, Scyther, let's finish this with Quick Attack!" called Red with a fist pump into the air.

Scyther charged once more at Munchlax, leaving a glowing white trail behind it as it flew in the air. It rammed itself into the Big Eater Pokemon head-on and smashed it into a tree before retreating to Red. Munchlax slumped against the tree before falling onto the ground. It was defeated.

"Go, Pokeball!" shouted the Pokemon trainer as he tossed a standard red-and-white Pokeball into the air. The device hit Munchlax on the head and opened up to suck in the Pokemon in a blob of red light. It wobbled for several seconds before it let out a soft "ping," signaling a successful capture. Red walked over to the Pokeball and picked it up only to toss it into the air to release a badly scratched and bruised Munchlax. The trainer then fished into his yellow backpack to pull out an orange colored spray bottle, a Super Potion. He kneeled down and sprayed the medicine all over Munchlax, healing it. After whispering a few words to which Munchlax gave a nod to, Red recalled the little Pokemon into its Pokeball.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: OK! (Orchestral Arrangement)**_

"Lissa, Sumia, please come over here," said Red.

Lissa and Sumia walked up to Red, both blushing a little, wondering what Red would want.

"I would like you two to keep Munchlax," said Red, holding Munchlax's Pokeball to them. "I've noticed that you two have been making a lot of pies and you, Lissa, mentioned that you have nobody to try the pies with. Plus, you two seem to get along well with the little guy."

Lissa gingerly took the Pokeball from Red's hand, accepting the gift. Sumia watched with bated breath as the cleric tossed the Pokeball into the air, releasing the Big Eater Pokemon.

"Munchlax!" cheered the Munchlax upon seeing Lissa and Sumia.

"Wow, thanks, Red!" said Lissa before she and Sumia pulled Red into a hug.

"Yes, thanks!" added Sumia.

"Please take good care of it, okay?" requested Red.

"We will!" answered Lissa and Sumia at the same time before releasing Red so they could meet with Munchlax.

"Ah, young love…" sighed Virion, who saw Lissa and Sumia's affectionate display to Red. He watched as Red called out one of his Pokemon to continue training while Lissa and Sumia retreated to the mess hall, most likely treating Munchlax of their freshly cooked pies.

* * *

Alright, some characters (ie. Miriel) got more screentime and Stahl's pretty fun to mess around with when food's involved. Also, Lissa and Sumia's relationship with Red is developed a bit more. And of course, we got more Pokémon battle action!

Donnel's paralogue chapter is to be in the next chapter.

Reviews and constructive criticism please!


	9. Chapter 9: Recruitment Rescue!

Alright, let's open June 2013 with this chapter! Thanks for all of the favorites, reviews, and follows!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or Fire Emblem; those belong to Nintendo.**

**Chapter 9: Recruitment Rescue!**

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**Music track:** _**Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rising Fear**_

One afternoon, a boy ran into the Shepherds' barracks. He wore a dirty pair of grey trousers, a blue short-sleeved shirt. He had a brass-colored pot on his head that covered his curly locks of purple hair. He was red in the face, most likely from exhaustion from how hard he ran.

"Halp! Halp!" shouted the boy. He spoke with a very thick accent.

The calls for help soon attracted the attention of the Shepherds in the camp. Chrom rushed up to the boy.

"What's going on?" asked Robin as he arrived at the scene.

"Halp! You gots to help us! I'm beggin' you, milords!" pleaded the boy breathlessly.

"Slow down," said Chrom. "What happened?"

After several minutes of the boy (whose name was Donnel) explaining what was happening to his home village, which was overrun by marauding bandits, the Shepherds followed Donnel to said village. By the time they arrived at the village, dusk fell. Red had to call on Charizard, Blastoise, Snorlax and Lapras (to the villager's awe and wonder) to safely ferry the Shepherds across the water to reach the village as the village was located on an isolated island and Donnel's rowboat was too slow, small and old to carry the Shepherds. As they approached the village, they saw some menacing looking men dressed in red fur-trimmed clothing.

"Oy! There's the wee piglet!" called out one of the men, pointing to Donnel.

"…Great. Bandits," muttered Chrom.

"What's this? Another lordling come to watch over his chattel?" laughed another brigand tauntingly before he got a good look at the approaching group. "Aw damn me! Sh-Shepherds!"

"That's right," said Chrom. "So, what'll it be? Run and live? Or fight and die?"

The brigands growled in frustration before they fumed away. They fled to the nearby bandit camp which was the ruins of an old fort close to the village. The bandits consulted their leader.

"…And you're sure a'this?" asked the leader (whose name was Roddick).

"On the grave of my sainted mother, I swear it," replied the bandit fearfully. "It was Chrom and his Shepherds, and no mistake!"

Roddick chuckled. "A fancy lord'll fetch a high ransom from noble folk. We'll have the little man squealin' for mercy in no time!"

"We got nothin' left to take, sirs! Please, let our children go!" begged a middle-aged woman.

"Quit yer bleatin'!" hissed the leader before he shoved the woman down.

"Oy, Roddick! I think this cow's the mum of the brat what ran away," said one of the bandits.

"...Say, I know this one," said Roddick, taking a closer look of the woman. "You're the wife of the man what broke my rib last time we were 'ere!"

"And you killed him for it, monster!" screeched the woman. "I wish he'd done for you first..."

"Small wonder the brat's got more brass than brains if you're his mum," retorted the bandit's leader before he gave her a nasty, sadistic grin. "Guess we'll see for ourselves when we catch him, eh? Maybe we'll even make ya watch as we gut him! Bwa ha ha!"

"N-no! Please, he's just a boy!"

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "We'd best prepare for combat, just to be safe…"**_

Several minutes later, the Shepherds finally arrived at the old fort.

"This here's where they've taken up camp, Your Lordshipness," said Donnel, gesturing to the rubble.

"Er...right. Thanks, Donnel. Stay close, now," replied Chrom.

"Beg pardon, milord? You don't mean...? I...I can't fight, sir! I ain't never even stuck a pig before!"

"Oh, sorry. I just assumed... I mean... Look, just stay here. You'll be fine."

"I wish I was strong as you sirs and madams! Kick that scum out single handed, I would!"

"Then you should fight and grow stronger."

"But I ain't—"

"No man is born a warrior, Donnel. And farm work makes for fine training—a sickle's not far from a sword, after all. Bandits may be tougher than wheat, but the principle's the same."

"Ngh... A-all right, milord. As you say, I'm no warrior. But these're my people. I gots to do what I can!"

Robin quickly began making preparations. He arranged for Donnel to be accompanied by Kellam and Red and gave the villager a bronze lance so he can come into battle armed and ready. Red gave out a nostalgic sigh.

"This almost sounds like an escort mission in the Pokemon world," he thought to himself as he looked towards the blank-faced knight and the very nervous villager.

After a few minutes, Robin turned to Chrom.

"We're ready!" declared Robin as he pulled out his Thunder tome.

"Everyone in place?" asked Chrom as he looked over the Shepherds who were to come to battle one more time.

"R-ready," gulped Donnel as he unsteadily held his bronze lance before whispering to himself. "Fight and get stronger, he says... Guess it can't hurt to try. I sure hope I don't get in the way! Gosh, that would be just awful..."

Red scanned the ruins. He noted that the bandits consisted of axe-wielding barbarians and a smattering of archers. Then he saw some movement in the shadows behind the crumbling stone walls.

"Um, Robin, did you see something sneaking around behind that wall?" queried Red.

"Hmm… probably a couple of thieves," answered the tactician. "They're most likely after whatever loot that can be found here."

"Alright, let's go kick some butt!" said the Pokemon trainer before he rushed off.

"H-hey! Wait up!" cried out Donnel as he chased after him. Kellam silently trundled behind Donnel.

The bandits, who were loitering around on guard of intruders, quickly spotted Red rushing into the camp with Donnel and Kellam. One of the bandits pointed at Donnel before they quickly brandished their weapons and charged at them.

"Look, there's the piglet!" called out one of the bandits.

"Get 'em!" shouted another.

Red pulled out a Pokeball and threw it into the air.

"Go, Gengar!" he commanded.

"Huh?" said the bandits in chorus; they were confused as to what Red did.

The Pokeball opened up to release a blob of white light. The white light faded to reveal nothing but a pair of sinister red eyes, then a mouth curled into a sinisterly large toothy grin. Then the Pokemon's body came into view, materializing out of thin air. The creature had a large rotund purple body, a pair of large triangular ears, a pair of stumpy arms and legs and a short pointed tail. Its back is covered what looked like short spikes above its tail. It stood over a meter tall and was hovering off the ground.

"Gen-gen-gen-gen-gen-gen…" chuckled the creepy specter.

"What in tarnation's that?!" cried out Donnel as he clutched his lance closer to himself.

"… at least I'm not the only one who can become invisible," thought Kellam as he watched the Gengar perform loop-de-loops in the air.

"W-w-what's t-that?" stammered one of the bandits fearfully.

"It's scary!" replied another.

"G-G-G-GHOST!" cried out a third. "RUUUUUUN!"

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Movie 1: Flying in Chaos Pokeballs**_

"Don't let them get away! Gengar, use Hypnosis!" shouted Red, pointing to the brigands.

"Geeen-gaaar!" responded Gengar as it formed a glowing red energy orb in front of it between its hands. A pair of energy beams shot out of the orb before they lanced out towards the brigands. The beams zapped them, causing the men to collapse on the ground, fast asleep. Some snores began to fill the air.

"Alright, Donnel, they're yours!" called Red.

"YEEEEE-HAAAWWW!" cried the villager as he charged at the sleeping men. He began to jab them all over with his lance. Before the bandits can recover and become aware of what had happened, they had been beaten into a bloody pulp.

"Let's get'r done!" Donnel announced at last; he was having an adrenaline rush after knocking the bandits silly.

The process continued: Red incapacitated a group of bandits using one of Gengar's moves, and then Donnel and sometimes Kellam would dive in for the beating. Donnel quickly became more confident in his developing fighting ability, so Red allowed Donnel to attack a bandit one-by-one, only having Gengar jump in should Donnel had trouble. Donnel eventually took a few hits from the bandits.

"Argh!" he groaned as he finished off another brigand. "That did a number!"

He made to reach inside his pouch for a bottle of vulnerary, griping out an "Ugh, I hate drinkin' this stuff. It tastes… whew!"

"Here," said Red as he fished something out of one of the backpack pockets. "Eat this."

In Red's hand was a large plump blue berry.

"What in tarnation is that?" asked Donnel. "I've never seen anything like it back on the farm."

"This, Donnel, is an Oran Berry," replied Red. "It helps fix minor wounds much like a vulnerary would – but it tastes so much better."

Donnel tentatively took the Oran Berry off of Red's hand and sniffed it before he took a bite off of it and chewed it. His eyes flew wide open and he stopped chewing for a moment before he quickly stuffed the rest of the blue fruit into his mouth in frenzied bites.

"Amazing!" he cried. "It really tastes better than them vulner-thingies!"

Kellam watched with interest.

"I wonder if we could grow those berries? After all, they do look really tasty and are really helpful," he thought to himself.

Meanwhile, Lissa and Sumia were attacking the bandits at the other side of the fort. Lissa, who took ownership of the Pokemon since Sumia already had her own pegasus mount, had sent Munchlax out since she did not have an actual weapon of her own.

"Alright, Munchlax, use Body Slam!" called Lissa.

Munchlax jumped into the air and slammed its trademark belly flop onto one of the brigands. The brigand, a thief, flopped onto the ground with a badly crushed spinal cord.

"Great job, Munchlax!" complimented the cleric.

"Munch!" called the Big Eater Pokemon back as it pumped its arms before it picked up what looked like a silver staff topped with a pair of silver talons and a green jewel.

"What did you find, buddy?" asked Lissa, taking the staff from Munchlax. "Oh, it's a Rescue Staff!"

She then watched Sumia dispatch the other thief by skewering him with her thrown javelin. The pegasus knight then noticed a razor-sharp lance poking out of the deceased bandit's sack.

"Huh? It's a Killer Lance," said Sumia. "It's certainly better than this iron lance. I'd definitely be more useful to the Shepherds… and Red!"

After a while, the Shepherds took out the majority of the bandits in the fort. The remaining bandits were their leader, Roddick and his two archer henchmen.

"Time them castle whelps learned what us wild-born men can do!" crowed Roddick to his remaining henchmen. "Shoot 'em down!"

At once, the archers went into action. They aimed their arrows and fired them from their bows at the Shepherds present. The Shepherds quickly took cover behind some of the broken walls and rubble.

"Gengar, use Shadow Ball on those two!" commanded Red.

"Gengar!" said the Shadow Pokemon in affirmation.

The Ghost-Poison type Pokemon flew into the air in front and above the archers. The bowmen quickly launched arrows at the purple poltergeist but, to their shock and horror, the arrows did not just miss the target – they flew THROUGH it. Chrom quickly took advantage of their surprise and cut them down with his Falchion. The blows left the archers staggering at their feet before two blobs of purple shadow energy flew through the air and slammed into them, finishing them off. The attacks left Roddick as the last bandit standing.

"C'mon! C'MON!" he jeered. "Who wants ta face me first?!"

"Go on," urged Red to Donnel. "All's left is him. Once he's out, your village will be saved. I'll have Gengar help when you need it."

"Alright. Let's get'r done!" said the ragtag soldier before he charged at the barbarian. "YEEEE-HAAWWW!"

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Movie 5: Going to Latios!**_

The barbarian was surprised by the sudden charge from what looked like a teenaged weakling that he took a harsh blow from his bronze lance. However, he easily shoved Donnel back with his hand axe before he tossed said axe at Donnel. Donnel ducked in the nick of time, but the hand axe behaved much like a boomerang as on its way back to its thrower, it struck the villager at his metal-pot-helmet protected skull, leaving said villager temporarily disoriented.

"Careful, Donnel!" cautioned Robin. "That guy's got a ranged axe – not only does he has an advantage over you since you have a lance, he also can attack you from a distance."

"Fiddlesticks!" griped Donnel as he quickly recovered from the blow and charged once more.

The barbarian was ready this time and used his handaxe, backed up by brute strength, to not only parry Donnel's lance, but also sent the villager plummeting to the ground hard. Donnel had the wind knocked out of him after slamming stomach first onto the ground and was panting heavily. Roddick approached him with a sneer.

"Aw… what's wrong lil' piggy? Had enough?" he chortled. He put away his hand axe to pull out a different axe. It was made of steel and was larger and heavier. Roddick held up his steel axe, ready to swing it to finish off Donnel.

Red was about to give a command to Gengar when he noticed Donnel's body twitching before he saw his grime-covered face peer up from the ground, glaring at bandit leader.

"Rrrgghh… HOW 'BOUT THIS?!" panted Donnel defiantly as he sat up and stabbed his bronze lance with both hands right up into Roddick's chest where his heart was.

Blood flew everywhere. Roddick was surprised by the sudden attack as blood dripped from his wounds and from his mouth.

"Gahaugh! Nngh... This ain't...where..." he groaned before he dropped his weapons and fell onto the ground face down. He soon died.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Best Wishes: Unova Champion Victory**_

Chrom helped up Donnel to his feet. The villager was badly bruised. Red and Lissa helped Donnel recover using Oran Berries and the healing staff respectively.

"We… We did it! We're rid of them bandits for good and all!" cheered Donnel as he feebly pumped his lance into the air.

"A worthy first victory, Donny. You fought well," smiled Chrom before he heard some rushing footsteps.

Everybody turned to see a middle-aged woman with a green ragged dress rush into the fort. She looked anxious as she rushed towards Donnel.

"Ma! Ma, it's me!" gasped out Donnel tiredly, relieved that the woman – his mother – was safe from the bandits.

"Oh, Donny! Thank goodness you're safe! I was worried near to death, boy!" said Donnel's mother as she hugged him tightly before she turned to Chrom. "I can't thank you enough for savin' my son and our village, milord."

She then looked to Donnel.

"...Donny! Where are your manners?! Take a knee and thank His Lordliness!" she scolded. This drew some giggles and chuckles by the Shepherds present.

"Er, I can't begin to repay all what you done for us, sir! Th-thank you!" said Donnel, bowing respectfully to Chrom.

"You led the charge, Donny. We just picked off the stragglers," replied Chrom earnestly. "Hone your potential and use it to keep this village safe."

"W-wait! Please!"

"Something wrong?"

"I has a request, sir. If it please Your Graceliness... Take me with you, milord! Lemme be a Shepherd like you! I'm good with livestock, I am! Please, sir!"

"Hush now, you fool boy!" scolded Donnel's mother exasperatedly to Donnel. Her son turned to her.

"I want to hone my...whatever he said. I want to keep this place safe!" said Donnel with conviction, looking at his mother in the eye. "I never thought I was good for nothin' more than shovelin' dirt... But milord showed me there's more I can do. More I needs to be doing!"

"You needs be knowin' your place, boy! A farmhand's no fit for a royal—"

"Actually, we'd be thrilled to have him," cut in Chrom before the family dispute could get worse. "The Shepherds need every good man we can find, and your son fought bravely."

"Y-you're very kind to say as much, Your Lordshipness, but..." trailed off Donnel's mother before she sighed. "Well, you're a man grown now, Donny. I s'pose you can make up your own mind."

"Aw, Ma..." said Donnel, relieved that his request was granted.

"You just come home safe, love. I'll see that the village is still standin' when you return a hero," said his mother happily. She was about to walk back to the village but she saw that Donnel did not budge.

"...Well?! Off with you, then! Glory's waitin', boy!" she said scoldingly, making Donnel walk over to her and engage in eye contact once more.

"I ain't fightin' for glory, Ma. I'm fightin' for you!" he proclaimed firmly. "But if I do find some glory, I'll be sure to bring it home for you!"

"Just come home alive, Donny," said his mother as she smiled and hugged him one last time before she went back to the village.

With that, the Shepherds, with their newest recruit, Donnel, returned to Ylisstol for a good night's rest.

* * *

I hope I did Donnel's language style and the battle scenes well! This chapter was rather tough for me to think through!

Meanwhile, I'm also testing the waters on violence content.

If you want certain Pokémon to be seen in action, let me know through your reviews and PMs!

Reviews and criticism, as usual, are welcome! Tell me what you think!

UPDATE (6/5/13): Chapter 10 is in progress, but updating it may be held back until this story receives some reviews.


	10. Chapter 10: THIS IS PLEGIA!

As requested by user ShadowMario2000 a couple chapters ago, Blastoise gets a big appearance in this chapter!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or Fire Emblem; those belong to Nintendo.**

**Chapter 10: THIS IS PLEGIA!**

* * *

The next day, the Shepherds took a day off. Not a single group of Risen soldiers or bandits had appeared. Many of the Shepherds took the time to rest or to train. Red spent his day not only training up his Pokemon, but also teaching Kellam and Donnel about the berries that grew back in his home world. Chrom, Frederick and Lissa all decided to visit Ylisse's exalt, Emmeryn, at the Ylisstol castle for the day.

Several hours later, dusk fell. Chrom, Lissa and Frederick were all going to say "goodnight!" to Emmeryn when Phila, the captain of Ylisse's Pegasus Knights burst into the throne room. She looked very pale.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Oh No!**_

"Your Grace! M-milord!" she panted. "Forgive me, but I bring alarming news!"

"Phila! Slow down, please!" soothed Emmeryn. "What's happened?"

"Plegian soldiers have been sighted inside our southwest border! They attacked a village in Themis and abducted the duke's daughter!"

Lissa quickly turned pale too as her eyes widened with horror.

"B-but that would be...Maribelle!" she gasped. "Chrom, we have to do something!"

"There's more," continued Phila grimly. "King Gangrel of Plegia claims Lady Maribelle invaded HIS country. He demands we pay reparations for this 'insult.'"

Chrom gritted his teeth in seething anger.

"And we're to believe a dastard like the Mad King of Plegia?!" he ejaculated.

"Peace, Chrom," placated Emmeryn calmly. "We must keep our wits about us."

"We should put a sword in his gut and be done with it! The Mad King has been trying to provoke war with Ylisse at every step! He won't stop until he drags this whole continent to hell with him!"

"I agree with the prince, Your Grace," said Phila. "We must demonstrate to Plegia that such actions have consequences."

"I understand your feelings, Chrom. Truly I do," conceded Emmeryn firmly. "But if we give him the war he wants, then we lose, no matter what the outcome. Our last conflict nearly ruined the halidom. It left Ylisseans homeless and starving. We cannot repeat that mistake. I will offer parley with King Gangrel."

"Emm, no! You can't!" pleaded Lissa fearfully.

"Please reconsider, Your Grace," put in Phila. "He cannot be trusted to act in good faith!"

"So either we choose to march to war or leave Lady Maribelle to die?" asked Emmeryn rhetorically. "No. I will not accept that."

Phila quickly became exhausted by the feverish exchange.

"...Forgive me, Your Grace. I spoke out of turn. I know you will stand always by your own principles. Pray, allow the pegasus knights to accompany you, though," she sighed tiredly.

"I'm going too. ...Someone has to save you from your good intentions," Chrom muttered, exasperated.

"And I want to be there for you AND Maribelle!" added Lissa.

"Don't forget me and the Shepherds," jumped in Frederick.

"As you wish," replied Emmeryn with a gentle and calm smile. "Thank you all. Your strength will be mine."

"So, where is Lady Maribelle now?" asked the wary great knight.

"According to the report…" said Phila.

After the pegasus knights' captain finished her report, Chrom, Frederick and Lissa left for the garrison. When they got there, Chrom and Frederick told the other Shepherds the terrible news and ordered them to begin packing up their necessary belongings for the next day's march.

**No music track**

After a while, all of the Shepherds were prepared for the next day and got ready to go to sleep.

"Well then? Is everyone ready to go?" asked Chrom. "It's a long march through the western mountains to the Plegian border."

Suddenly a boy rushed into the room. He looked very young – at about Donnel's age. He wore blue and dirty grey mage robes that certainly looked to be a couple sizes too large for him and a pair of brown gloves. A large blue floppy pointed wizard's hat rested upon his maroon-haired head. He appeared ready to hop around the common room fit-to-burst.

"Captain! I'm all packed!" he shouted excitedly. "When do we leave?!"

Chrom, who was tired after packing up for the upcoming journey, was startled by the mage's outburst and quickly became annoyed.

"Ricken? How did you...?" he asked crossly before he shook his own head rapidly. "Go back inside. You're not old enough for this mission."

"But, Captain!" begged Ricken with arms flailing wildly. "You know my skill with magic! You know I can handle myself!"

The young wizard was about to say more but Chrom cut him off abruptly, pointing his index finger at him.

"I'd feel safer with your magic here, protecting the garrison, all right?" snapped the prince, pointing towards the ground with his index finger to punctuate his point. "We're off, then. Be good."

With his point made, Chrom left the common room for his tent so he can sleep for the night. All of the other Shepherds had left for their tents too. Only Ricken remained in the commons room, frustrated with himself and with the Shepherds' leader.

"'Be good?'" fumed Ricken as he stomped around the room in circles in seething silence. "Gods, how old does he think I am?!"

He paused as he looked around the room before he looked out of one of the windows to the starlit night. He then turned so he can blow out the few remaining candles whose lights flickered feebly.

"...Well, I'll show him just how good I can be!" he proclaimed resolutely before he left the now-dark room for his tent.

"After all," he thought. "A night's rest will do me good if I want to be at my best!"

The next morning, Chrom assembled his Shepherds (except Ricken) and escorted Emmeryn to the Plegian border. The mountains there were tall and craggy. A couple trees were scattered about. Dotting the mountains along with the trees were what looked like old stone forts.

Standing at the top of one of the craggy cliffs on the mountains were a man and a woman. The man had short grizzly red hair and goatee and wore black colored clothes and a pair of red boots that curled upwards at the toes. A flashy yellow cape was draped behind his back and a gold thin crown adorned the top of his head. The woman had long silvery hair and wore a particularly revealing outfit which consists of a short black skirt and a black top that revealed her ample cleavage. What looked like black pieces of spiny armor rested on her head, shoulders and hips. Her face was marked with what looked like red tattoos. Her legs were (barely) covered by dark-colored stockings that had black-colored versions of her facial markings. She also wore a pair of short fancy high-heeled boots.

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "Now that's a declaration of war if I've ever heard one!"**_

"What's this, then?" sneered the man mockingly before he chuckled. "The exalt herself, in all her radiance? I fear I must shield my eyes! Bwa ha ha ha!"

"King Gangrel," beckoned Emmeryn calmly yet firmly. "I've come for the truth of this unfortunate incident between us. "

"The truth?" queried the woman standing next to Gangrel sarcastically. "I can give you the truth."

"Perhaps milady might first share her name?"

"You may call me Aversa."

"Very well, Aversa. Is Maribelle unharmed?"

"Who?" blurted out Gangrel before he remembered. "Oh yes, that little blonde brat."

The Plegian king sniggered before he pointed his finger behind himself nearby. There was Maribelle held captive by a Plegian soldier wearing a skull helmet and red fur-trimmed clothing. The troubadour had her wrists bound together tightly by strong ropes. She was struggling to move her hands through the ropes in a vain attempt to free herself.

"Unhand me, you gutter-born troglodyte!" Maribelle demanded angrily.

"Maribelle!" cried out Lissa fearfully.

"Lissa? Darling, is that you?"

"This girl crossed the Plegian border without our consent," said Aversa smoothly before she continued to lie. "And what's more... She wounded the brave Plegian soldiers who sought only to escort her safely home."

"LIES!" burst out Maribelle furiously, glaring at Aversa. "You speak nothing but lies, hag! Did they not teach the meaning of the word "truth" in wretched-crone school?!"

Aversa clicked her tongue and shook her head disapprovingly.

"...You see? No manners at all. Such a nasty little bird simply had to be caged," she sighed.

"Such a violent temper speaks to her guilt," decreed Gangrel before he took up a thinking pose mockingly. "This will call for a weighty punishment. And if she were to later confess to being an Ylissean spy? My goodness! It would take an act of CONSIDERABLE good faith to repair our relations."

"I have done nothing wrong! It is they who should confess!" shouted Maribelle pleadingly. "They are the ones who invaded Ylisse. They razed an entire village! When I attempted to intervene, they took me and dragged me across the border. Let the plundered shops and charred homes of that village serve as my proof!"

"That would only prove Ylisse has a bandit problem—something I hear oft of late... But indeed, tonight I shall weep salty tears into my pillow for your dead villagers."

"Your Grace, please!"

"Peace, Maribelle. I believe you," replied Emmeryn before she turned to the Mad King. "King Gangrel, I request that you release this woman at once. Surely you and I can sort out these affairs without the need of hostages."

"Without so much as an apology?" demanded Gangrel rudely. "Why should I even bother with parley? I'm within my rights to have her head this instant and be home in time for supper."

"You black-hearted devil!" shouted Chrom through gritted teeth.

The Shepherds watched the failing parley with seething silence. Red and Robin were slightly confused as to what was going on, but they grew crosser and crosser by the minute.

"Control your dog, my dear, before he gets someone hurt," said Gangrel with a twisted yet teasing grin, wagging his pointer finger at Chrom.

"Rrgh..." growled Chrom as he held his tongue.

"Now then, Your Graceliness. Perhaps we can arrange a trade? You give me the Fire Emblem, and I return Mari-Contrary here in one piece."

"You would ask for Ylisse's royal treasure?" gasped Emmeryn. "But why?"

"Because I know the legend!" replied Gangrel before he laughed maniacally. "The Fire Emblem is the key to having all one's wishes realized. I have desired it for years. YEARS! ...Yet my birthday comes and goes each year, and nothing from Ylisse. Heheh..."

"The Emblem's power is meant for a single purpose, King Gangrel: to save the world and its people at their hour of most desperate need. Would you claim a more noble wish?"

"I want what every Plegian wants—a grisly end for every last Ylissean! What could be more noble than that?"

"What?"

"Surely you have not forgotten what the last exalt did to my people? Your father named us heathens! His 'crusade' across Plegia butchered countless of my subjects and my kin!"

"...I have never denied Ylisse's past wrongdoings. But I have sworn to never repeat those mistakes. Ours is now a realm of peace."

"Sounds like the crux of the matter," thought Red silently as he watched the two royal leaders argue.

"Yours is now a haven of hypocrisy!" screeched Gangrel at the Ylissean exalt. "Now give me the Fire Emblem!"

"No, Your Grace!" begged Maribelle. "I'd sooner die than act as a bargaining chip for this filthy reprobate!"

"No, Maribelle..." replied Emmeryn with a stern frown.

"Ugh..." groaned Gangrel before he began to rant like a child with a temper tantrum. "Taaaaaalk talk-talk-talk-talk. It's time to speak louder than words! This negotiation is over, Your Luminosity! I shall have the Emblem if I have to pry it from your shiny dead hands!"

At once, with a sweep of his arm, Gangrel signaled a few of his henchmen to attack. The three brigands ran over to Emmeryn. Two of them carried axes and while the last carried a long lance. Chrom jumped in front of her, ready to protect his older sister. He immediately drew his sword and cut the nearest of the two axe wielders down. The axe wielder fell, dead by Chrom's sword slash at his throat. Blood pooled upon the ground he rested on.

"Stay back!" Chrom barked. "Or you'll all suffer the same fate!"

"Now that's a declaration of war if I've ever heard one..." replied Gangrel as a sick smile formed on his face. "A big, messy war that will bleed you Ylisseans dry. Bwa ha ha!"

Heeding the sinister laughter as a call, Plegian soldiers began to rush out of the old forts, ready to attack the Shepherds. While listening to the din of battle, Aversa approached Maribelle with a sultry sneer.

"Poor, stupid girl..." said Aversa lackadaisically as she trailed a finger under Maribelle's chin before she giggled evilly. "Are you really worth fighting a war over? Years from now, you'll be remembered only as she who destroyed House Ylisse."

"No... That's not..." started Maribelle before her eyes widened in horror. "Oh, Lissa... Please, no..."

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Mt. Bristle**_

All of a sudden, a burst of wind blasted the guard holding Maribelle off his feet. The guard was so surprised that he took the full brunt of the magic spell and flopped to the ground unconscious. Aversa was surprised and could not act right away as Ricken the young mage rushed in with a cyan-colored tome in hand, to untie the ropes that held Maribelle's wrists.

"Maribelle! Go! You're free!" he shouted as he tossed away the ropes.

"RICKEN?!" Maribelle screeched out of shock at the identity of her rescuer. "What are you doing here?"

"Just run! We can talk about it later!"

"Oh, is this your little boyfriend? Isn't he just precious…? Kufufufufu…" giggled Aversa with a sly yet sinister smile.

Ricken froze. He hated being called "little." He turned to Aversa with a harsh glare.

"Don't talk down to me, witch!" he snarled as he channeled magic from his Elwind tome and sent a sky-blue wind blast at Aversa. Aversa blocked it with her arms, but was stunned by the swirling magic in the process.

"Nngh!" spluttered the white-haired woman. "W-wind magic?"

"Come on, Maribelle!"

"Right!" agreed Maribelle as she and Ricken ran away from Aversa and the downed brigand.

"Wretched whelp!" seethed Aversa as she recovered from the magic attack. "I should... No. Our soldiers have them outnumbered. The brats will be dead long before they can reach their comrades. Kufufufu…"

She turned to watch as the Shepherds faced off against hordes of Plegian soldiers before she lurked away.

Down below, Ricken and Maribelle managed to escape from Aversa's clutches and were now at a cliff above where the Shepherds were.

"Whew!" panted Ricken. "We've outrun them but… how are we going to reach the others without getting killed or jumping off the cliff?"

"We can only hope," started Maribelle. "That the Shepherds can rescue us… and I wish my horse was here – I'm worn out!"

At the top of the rocky hills, Gangrel rallied the nearby soldiers before he turned to the commander. Said commander had neat dark red hair and wore plate armor. He was mounted on the back of a ferocious copper-scaled looking wyvern and carried a short red axe.

"Bwa ha ha! I have my war!" laughed Gangrel ecstatically before he turned to the mounted commander. "Captain Orton! Remain here, and take down as many Ylisseans as you can. You can expect reinforcements from the forts as well. Now, do your best—at doing your worst! Bwa ha!"

Orton saluted before Gangrel left the area. He turned to the troops who had yet to be in position.

"What are you waiting for?" he demanded. "We have sheep to slaughter!"

At the foot of the mountains, Robin was formulating a plan, while Red was deciding which Pokemon to use.

"First," stated Robin. "We need to find a way to rescue Maribelle and Ricken."

"I have something!" piped up Lissa before she searched in a crate inside a supply wagon. "I can use this Rescue staff to transport them one at a time. However, it's fragile."

The tactician squinted at Maribelle and Ricken before he returned his attention to the young cleric.

"Use it to bring Maribelle over to us," he instructed finally before he turned to Red. "We can't afford to use up too many charges from that staff. Red, can you get over to Ricken?"

"Sure thing, Robin," replied the Pokemon trainer as he pulled out a Pokeball. "Go, Blastoise!"

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Mt. Thunder**_

"Blastoise!" said the large brown-shelled turtle as it landed on its stumpy yet strong hind legs with a loud thud.

Red looked up to see some of the Plegian soldiers mounted on wyverns.

"Robin," he said. "Are those… dragons?"

"We call them wyverns, but yes, they're dragons," said Robin. "Some soldiers ride on wyverns into battle."

"Alright. Blastoise, carry me up to the top of the cliff with Rock Climb!"

The Shellfish Pokemon tilted itself so Red can climb on top of its shell. Once the Pokemon trainer was sitting safely on top of it, Blastoise walked over to the cliff wall. It took a few steps back before he began to charge. The momentum was enough for Blastoise to rapidly scale up the rocky face of the cliff. In no time at all, Blastoise and Red were soon in Ricken and Maribelle's vicinity.

"Red!" gasped Maribelle in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"Lissa's gonna teleport you out of here," replied Red. "I'm here to make sure Ricken gets to safety."

He then turned around to look down from the cliff.

"Lissa, Maribelle's safe right now!" he called.

"Okay!" Lissa shouted from below as she got ready to use her Rescue staff. With that, Maribelle disappeared in a flurry of magical sparks, reappearing at the bottom of the mountain where Lissa was.

"Maribelle! Are you hurt?!" asked Lissa to her best friend.

"Nothing I didn't return twofold, darling," Maribelle replied nonchalantly as she dusted off her sleeves.

"I'm glad you're safe," said Robin as he walked up to the two girls, relieved.

"Who...? Oh. It's you."

"Yes. I know you're not especially fond of me or Red, but it's a relief just the same."

"Oh, it's not a question of fondness. I am simply protective of Lissa. My treasure is very sensitive, and... Wait. Am I really justifying myself to a commoner? Gods... Yes, well, I do...apologize for being curt. And... And... And you have my thanks for your part in the rescue. There, I said it!"

With a huff, Maribelle soon got a staff, which looked similar to Lissa's but more potent, and soon climbed aboard on her own horse mount. She, Lissa and Robin soon joined the other Shepherds in routing the enemy soldiers.

Back above, Ricken was staring at Red's Blastoise in awe. He had never seen such a creature before. However, he snapped out of it when he saw a Plegian dark mage running towards them, carrying a purple-colored tome. He wore a full-body lace cloth and red wizard's hat, loincloth and a short shawl.

"Kekeke…" the dark mage cackled. "A little boy? He shall be an easy target!"

Ricken froze once again, feeling insecure with himself. Red decided to jump in.

"Blastoise, use Hydro Pump!"

"Blast!" grunted Blastoise. Its two metal cannons that peered out of its shell clicked to take aim at the man before two streams of high pressure water shot out of them. The blasts slammed into the dark mage with concussive force, sending him right against the rocky cliff face. The man was easily unconscious, if not dead.

"Whoa!" shouted Ricken, after he recovered. "That was awesome! Let's see what else it can do!"

His wish came soon enough, in the form of a Plegian wyvern rider ready to attack them with a light hand axe. Ricken quickly launched a fast Elwind spell strike. The wyvern swerved to dodge it, but was not prepared for what Red planned Blastoise to do.

"Ice Beam!"

Blastoise looked up to see the wyvern rider and opened its mouth. A glowing blue-white ball formed in its jaws before cyan-color beams lanced out of it, reaching for the skies. The wyvern rider urged his mount to dodge.

"Keep at it!" ordered Red.

The Water-type Pokemon continued to fire out Ice Beam. At last, the wyvern began to tire and was soon struck by one of the freeze rays – one of its wings was quickly frozen solid.

"What the-?!" spluttered the rider. "Ice?! No!"

With its wing frozen, the wyvern struggled to stay airborne before it, along with its rider, fell to the bottom of the mountain to their deaths.

With another soldier down, Red walked over to the cliff to watch the battle. He saw that the numbers of the Plegian soldiers were beginning to thin out and the Shepherds were gradually starting to double-team on the hapless remainders.

At last, the commander, Captain Orton on his wyvern, flew over to Red and pointed his short axe at him, issuing a challenge.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: VS. Rival (Last Battle!)**_

"I won't ask for your name, boy," he sneered. "Only your life!"

At once he charged directly at Red. Red thought quickly as he got ready to dodge.

"Blastoise, use Rapid Spin!" he called desparately as the wyvern rider closed in on him.

"Blast!" said the giant tortoise. It quickly put itself between Orton and Red before it leaped at the former. It retreated back into its giant brown shell and began to whirl like a top. The spinning Blastoise careened into Orton's wyvern, knocking it, along with its axe-wielding passenger, away.

"Red, that was close!" cried out Ricken.

"Damn!" Orton spat as he urged his dazed wyvern to charge at Blastoise, but was soon stopped by Red.

"Blastoise, Rock Climb!"

"Blast… TOISE!" grunted Blastoise loudly as the claws on its stumpy hands glowed and grew in length. The tortoise slammed them into the ground, causing the earth to crack.

For the other Shepherds, they felt the ground shaking.

"What in hell's name is that?!" shouted Chrom.

"Milord, look!" beckoned Frederick on his armored horse.

They watched as a giant rocky pillar rose out of the ground rapidly into the air. The pillar slammed into the belly of Orton's wyvern as it rose higher and higher into the air. Then, to the shock of the Shepherds, they saw Blastoise, snorting furiously, climbing up the giant rock pillar to reach the stunned wyvern rider.

"C'mon, c'mon!" urged Orton to his wyvern as he repeatedly slapped the wyvern's side to get it to move. "Get up! Get up!"

The wyvern could not fly – it was still reeling in pain as it snorted pathetically.

"Go the rest of the way with Waterfall, Blastoise!" called Red.

At once, Blastoise cloaked itself with water and charged up the pillar. What now looked like a large stream of water slammed into the wyvern and its rider high up into the air. Soon, the stream dissipated to reveal a now airborne turtle close to Orton, who was hanging on to his wyvern mount for dear life.

"Grab 'em!" ordered Red.

Blastoise wrapped its strong seemingly segmented arms around its target tightly.

"Now, Seismic Toss!"

"Blast… TOISE!" roared Blastoise as it performed a few headfirst flips in the air with its targeted cargo in tow before it tossed said cargo. Orton and his wyvern rocketed towards the ground and slammed into it, leaving a shallow crater at where they landed.

"Now, finish them with Body Slam!" ordered Red.

Blastoise flipped in the air one more time and spread its large limbs out as it descended through the air. It was positioning itself for a heavy belly-flop. It soon crashed into the crater, right on top of the helpless wyvern rider commander with a loud BOOM (which made the other Shepherds wince). Orton and his mount succumbed to the crushing weight of Blastoise's Body Slam.

"Great job, Blastoise. Return!" thanked Red as he drew out Blastoise's Pokeball and withdrew his Pokemon. The battle was soon over as the remaining Plegian soldiers were killed or fled.

The Shepherds returned to Emmeryn, who was waiting for them at their supply wagon.

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "Negotiation's not my strong suit…"**_

"Forgive me, Emm," Chrom apologized. "I acted rashly."

"It's all right, Chrom," replied Emmeryn with a gentle smile. "King Gangrel is the one at fault here. You were only protecting me."

"The Mad King will be rallying his forces, if they have not mobilized already," cautioned Frederick. "I suggest we make haste back to Ylisstol and discuss our strategy."

"Of course, Frederick. It seems war is upon us. We must protect the Ylissean people at all costs."

With that, the Shepherds left the border mountains and returned to Ylisstol.

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An action and dialogue heavy chapter! Good thing I'm out of high school to write this up!

... And yes, the chapter's title is a reference to the Internet meme that originated from the movie _300_.

If there's a Pokémon you want to see in action, let me know through a review or a PM.

Review please! Constructive criticism is always welcome!

Hope you've enjoyed this chapter!

UPDATE (6/10/13): Chapter 11 in progress!


	11. Chapter 11: The Dimensional Scream

Hope you (especially you Pokémon Mystery Dungeon fans) enjoy this chapter!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or Fire Emblem; those belong to Nintendo.**

**Chapter 11: The Dimensional Scream**

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It took several days before the Shepherds can finally arrive back at Ylisstol. A string of attacks hit a couple of northern villages. Some were caused by bandits, while others are caused by Risen.

The sun rose to its peak when noon came around on that day when they finally arrived back at the barracks in Ylisstol. They were gathering their belongings at the barracks before they head out to Castle Ylisstol. They were going to spend the next few days at the castle to provide extra security for the exalt.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Surf**_

Donnel was busy going fishing for lunch at a nearby river. He sat on the grassy ground, holding a fishing rod in his hand, waiting for a bite. After he caught a few fish, he then felt a tug on his fishing rod that was stronger than the rest.

"It's a big one!" said Donnel. "Alright, fishy, come to Donny!"

He then struggled to fish up whatever caught onto the hook as it was very heavy. After several seconds of nearly falling into the water, he gave a great heave. His catch sailed through the air and landed on the ground with a thud.

"Holy mackerel!" exclaimed Donnel. "That's a big fishy!"

He safely put the catch inside his net, which was very hard to do as it kept flopping helplessly, and returned to the barracks.

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "But, Frederick, it's nearly dark!"**_

"O'er here!" he called to the fellow Shepherds. "Look at what I gots!"

The Shepherds gathered to get a closer look at Donnel's catches. What got their attention the most, was the biggest of them all. It looked like a meter-long red fish with large eyes, yellow spiky dorsal and anal fins, a white pair of side fins and tail and a pair of yellow whiskers. Its large mouth was wide open.

"Karp! Karp! Magi-karp!" uttered the large fish as it flopped inside the net.

"It's huge," said Stahl in awe as he started to drool.

"Look, it talks!" giggled Lissa.

"Hm… fascinating," muttered Miriel in deep thought as she pulled out a notebook and an ink-tipped quill to scribble some notes. "A fish that is able to talk."

"Is that… even a real fish?" asked Robin doubtfully.

"Yes… is it even edible?" added Chrom just as doubtfully.

Red walked up and saw what was in Donnel's fishing net.

"That's a Magikarp," he said. "A fish Pokemon. They're very common in waterways back where I'm from."

"What does the Pokedex say?" queried Sumia, curious.

Red took out his Pokedex and pointed it to the Magikarp.

"Magikarp, the Fish Pokemon. A Water-type. It is famous for being very unreliable and can be found swimming in seas, lakes, rivers and shallow puddles," beeped the Pokedex.

"'Unreliable?'" asked Robin. "How?"

"Well, there is a reason why many trainers call Magikarp out as the 'world's weakest Pokemon,'" started Red. "It's because they do practically nothing but splash!"

"Then, um, does it evolve into something?"

"Indeed it does, though training it will be very difficult."

Red checked his Pokedex again to find the entry for Magikarp's evolution. He held it up for everyone to see. The Shepherds were very shocked!

"By the gods' name…" whispered Chrom.

"What in the world is that?!" shouted Frederick.

"It's hideous!" screeched Maribelle.

"Eep!" squeaked Lissa as she hid behind Red and Maribelle in fright.

"Ugh… I think I lost my appetite," mumbled Stahl. "But I still feel hungry…"

"Pff, ha!" laughed Vaike. "It's still no match for Teach!"

"Yeah right, chump," scoffed Sully to Vaike. "That monster would kick AND eat your arse!"

"A fish becoming a giant serpent…" murmured Miriel as she scribbled some more notes. "I must know how…"

"WHAT?!" screamed Ricken as he read the height stat shown in the Pokedex entry before looking at the Magikarp. "That little fish can become that huge! Why can't I get a growth spurt like that?!"

"Um, is that even the right entry?" asked Robin, scratching his head.

Red pressed a button so the Pokedex can play out the audio entry.

"Gyarados, the Atrocious Pokemon and the evolved form of Magikarp. A Water-Flying type. It is known for being brutally vicious and enormously destructive and for totally destroying cities in ancient times," it beeped.

Silence reigned in the camp. At last, Donnel broke it.

"I'd take tha lil' guy in. He and I shall protect our home together!" he proclaimed with eager resolve.

"Alright, you can catch the Magikarp," chuckled Red as he fished an empty Pokeball out from his knapsack.

"So, er… how do ya catch 'em Pokemons?"

"Well, the most basic part is being able to throw a Pokeball at the Pokemon to catch it. Normally, you need to weaken the target before attempting a capture, but since Magikarp isn't very strong, a Pokeball will do."

"Gotcha."

Donnel took a step back and tossed the Pokeball at the flopping Fish Pokemon. The spherical device landed on the water-type and sucked it in. After a couple seconds of wobbling, the Pokeball pinged, confirming a successful capture.

"I've done it!" he shouted joyfully, holding the Pokeball with Magikarp in it in his hand.

"Take good care of it," advised Red. "Magikarp can become a formidable partner if you're willing to believe in it."

He then set down his backpack and began to rummage through it. With both hands, he pulled out what was made mostly out of metal, plastic and rubber. He then unfolded the large, odd object. Once unfolded, it had something of a metal skeleton and two large wheels with rubber tires.

"What's that?" asked Robin.

"It's a bicycle," replied Red. "I can use it to get to places quickly."

"How?"

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Bicycle**_

Red tacitly replied by mounting on the bicycle and started to pedal. Soon enough, he began to circle the Shepherds around on his bike.

"That looks fun!" remarked Lissa. "I'd like to ride on it!"

Red chuckled. "Then hop on board!"

He then helped Lissa climb onto his bike. The cleric was soon sitting behind the Pokemon trainer, with her arms wrapped around his waist. Sumia, feeling jealous, quickly brought her pegasus mount over.

"May I come with you too?" she asked sweetly.

"Sure!" replied the Pokemon trainer cheerily. "The more, the merrier like they say! Anyways, I'm off to see if I can actually buy anything at the market."

With that, Red, Lissa and Sumia took off to Ylisstol. Lissa enjoyed the ride immensely as she felt the slipstream blow past her hair like a fast breeze.

At the marketplace, there was some shouting at the center of the plaza. A green merchant's tent had been erected and the tent's owner was busy hawking her wares. She had slightly dark red hair tied into a ponytail and wore baggy green clothes and a large tan coat. Upon seeing Red, she took notice of him quickly.

"Oi, Pokemon trainer!" she called out. "We're open for business!"

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "Open for business!"**_

Red walked over to the merchant's stand.

"You called for me?" he asked, pointing to himself.

"That's right," replied the merchant cheerfully. "You're a Pokemon trainer, aren't you? I, Anna the Secret Seller, have items waiting to be sold that you can use!"

She pointed to a bright red rug that had yellow tile-like squares on it. Sitting on the rug were certainly items that were meant to be used by a Pokemon trainer such as Pokeballs, potions and berries. A small green chameleon-like Pokemon with yellow lining and a red zigzag was busy setting a coil of rope on one "tile" of the rug.

"Who's that little guy?" asked Sumia, pointing to the little green Pokemon.

"Oh, that's Kecleon," replied Anna. "He's been helping out for a while now. He's really good at beating up bandits who try to steal from me. Small, but packs a wallop."

Red took a look at Anna's wares.

"Do you accept Pokedollars?" he asked hopefully. When he saw the shops, they only accepted gold coins which Red did not have much of; he only had enough to buy some extra food after being paid for being a member of the Shepherds.

"Of course!" replied Anna. "It's valid cash from your world… where else can I get these goods from?"

"Hmmm… can one exchange Pokedollars for gold coins?"

"Hmmm… never thought of that. I'll see how much gold coin and a Pokedollar's worth and vice versa."

Red took a look at the carpet one more time before he paid for some Potions, berries and Pokeballs.

"Pleasure doing business with you," said Anna as she accepted the payment. "Hope that we meet again!"

"Red, let's go meet Emm!" said Lissa as she began to tug on Red's arm.

"Emm? Oh, the exalt, right?" asked Red, remembering.

Lissa nodded.

"Alright, alright, let's meet up with her."

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Sympathy**_

It was late afternoon when Lissa, Sumia and Red arrived at Castle Ylisstol. Some of the Shepherds were already there with their belongings. After saying "Hello!" to the other Shepherds and securing Sumia's pegasus mount in the stables, they searched for Emmeryn in the castle. At last, they saw her taking a slow walk through an open-air corridor.

"Emm!" called out Lissa as she rushed over to her older sister. The two sisters began to catch up on what had happened in Ylisse and Chrom and the Shepherds. Sumia and Red took the time to talk to one enough other.

"Red, the flower-petal fortune said your dreams will come true! What do you dream about?" asked Sumia.

"Flower fortunes?" queried Red. "I didn't know you do that."

He looked at Sumia's hand. There was what remained of a daisy with its white petals stripped away. The small petals littered the floor like tiny feathers from a bird. Sumia giggled and blushed nervously when she saw Red's gaze.

"Anyways," said Red. "I plan on becoming a Pokemon master!"

Sumia, Red, Lissa and Emmeryn continued to talk for several more minutes before Emmeryn told them that she wanted to go see Chrom. As she walked past them, her robe brushed against Red's arm.

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "Someone has to save you from your good intentions."**_

Suddenly, Red began to feel dizzy. He felt himself weakening before he started to stumble.

"Ugh… dizzy…" groaned Red as he swayed back and forth. He remained standing on his two legs but his eyes became unfocused as he spaced out.

In Red's head, all was black before a white glow covered his vision. He suddenly had an overhead view of what looked like Emmeryn standing at the top of a pale yellow, sun-bleached cliff that looked much like a thin rocky spike.

"See now that one selfless act has the power to change the world!" declared Emmeryn with what sounded like finality.

She looked down for a few moments, as if in deep thought, before she looked back up, her eyes shining with steeled resolve. She walked slowly towards the edge of the cliff. When she reached the precipice, her body began to tilt slowly before she fell through the air.

Suddenly, everything went white before it became black again before Red finally came to his senses at last.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: "I saw something again…"**_

"Huh?" blurted out Red as he rapidly looked side by side with wide eyes only to see that Lissa, Sumia and Emmeryn had not left Red alone and were looking very concerned. "W-what was that?"

"What was what?" asked Lissa. She can see that whatever Red saw had clearly shaken him.

"I… I don't know for sure…" Red replied hesitantly. "I… I think I saw Emmeryn… walking off a cliff."

Everybody gasped. They did not know what to think of it. Sumia finally broke the silence.

"Is it a bad daydream?" asked Sumia gently as she put a hand on Red's shoulder much like how Red did to her when they first met.

"I certainly hope so…" replied Red. "I hope that it's not a sign of things to come."

The group later met up with Chrom and Frederick. Red raised an eyebrow at what Frederick was holding in his arms: six sets of blankets. Three of them were peach in color while the other three were royal blue in color.

"Frederick," asked Lissa, curious. "What are the blankets for?"

"Well, milady," started Frederick. "With the nights growing colder, I'm helping milord decide – OOF!"

Chrom had elbowed Frederick right into his armored gut.

"So, anything new?" asked the prince.

Emmeryn and Lissa spoked to Chrom before they told him about what could possibly be Red's vision. Chrom and Frederick were quickly disturbed by what Red saw.

"Do you remember anything that happened that could've triggered it?" asked Chrom.

"Nothing really unusual," replied Red, still puzzled. "I think Emmeryn's robe may have brushed against me before that happened."

Chrom quickly had an idea.

"Red, you remember how Robin has amnesia?" asked the prince to the Pokemon trainer.

Red nodded, remembering how Robin could not recall anything of his past.

"Maybe," continued the prince. "You can help him find a forgotten memory if you can possibly see the past as well!"

"Oh, that's a great idea!" exclaimed Lissa.

The group left Emmeryn alone to continue her walk as they searched for the tactician. Soon enough, they found him talking with Donnel.

"Robin!" called out Chrom.

"I'll talk to you later, Donnel," said Robin to the villager before he turned to the prince. "What is it, Chrom?"

"Red may have visions of a different time if he were to touch something," explained Chrom. "I'm wondering if it can bring up one of your memories."

"So… all Red has to do is touch me?" deduced Robin.

"Right."

Robin held out his right hand. Red can see what looked like a purple tattoo printed on the back of the tactician's hand. What stood out were the six eyes that seem to stare back at Red's gaze. The Pokemon trainer landed a finger on Robin's hand.

"Ugh…" groaned Red as he felt a dizzy spell slam into him again. He clutched his head as if he were having a harsh migraine and swayed on his feet.

Chrom and Frederick became worried for the fellow Shepherd. They were about to stop him from stumbling over before they saw that Red stopped swaying. They also noticed that his eyes had a faraway look in them. Frederick warily waved his hand in front of Red's face. The Pokemon trainer remained unresponsive.

"Amazing…" murmured Frederick.

"He's out of it, that's for sure," said Chrom with a grimace; he was disturbed by the sight.

"He may actually be seeing something."

"I hope so," said Robin. "Maybe he'll see something…"

In Red's head, everything became black again before the familiar white glow engulfed his vision.

"It's starting again," he thought.

He noticed that this time, the vision was taking place in a dark room that vaguely resembled a temple. Robin and Chrom were standing in the room. They were breathing heavily and were glaring.

Red followed the duo's glares to see a tall man who had dark skin and grizzly black hair and goatee and wore dark purple robes. The robed man was a menacing sight to behold. Behind him was what looked to be an altar that was used for prayer. A stare-down was taking place between the man and the duo.

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: Monstrosity**_

Chrom ended the stare-down as he charged directly at the man, with his Falchion pointed directly at him and with a loud and long battle cry. He swung his sword hard at the man but missed as said man stepped back before his hand crackled with magic. The sorcerer locked his magic-laced hand against Chrom's sword in a deadlock as Chrom swung the Falchion once again. Magical sparks flew everywhere as the glow from the sorcerer's magic in his hand illuminated their faces that were contorted in battle fury and concentration. They held their strikes against each other, pushing each other back and forth – none of them were willing to give up. Meanwhile, Robin was trying to charge up what looked to be a powerful electric-based magic attack in his hand.

At last, the sorcerer managed to shunt Chrom away and conjured up a large orb of magical energy in his hand, cackling evilly. He fired the blast at the prince, who rolled forward away from the blast towards the dark mage. Chrom attempted to land an upward sword swing at the man, but said man jumped high up into the air to avoid it.

"Up there!" cried out Chrom to Robin.

Robin looked up to see that the sorcerer, who was somehow suspended in midair close to the room's ceiling, had charged up another magic attack himself, though his was much bigger than Robin's, and shot it straight towards the stone floor. Both Chrom and Robin were knocked away from the blast's impact, with the latter firing his Thoron spell shot towards the ceiling as he was hurtling through the air.

"You fool!" hissed the sorcerer as he used his magic to teleport away from the extremely powerful thunder spell as it slammed and exploded on the ceiling harmlessly.

Chrom and Robin turned away from the ceiling just in time to see another blast of magic smash into the former, pushing him into one of the pillars lining the room. With a pained cry, Chrom smashed into the pillar back-first, causing the pillar to collapse and partially bury him in a pile of rubble and in a cloud of dust. When the dust cleared, Chrom was still conscious, but was struggling to recover as he stabbed his sword into the floor so he can use it as a crutch to get up again. He was panting wearily.

Then a loud crackling sound rang through the air. Red then watched as Robin turned around to see the sorcerer, who was now standing in front of the altar, charging up an extremely powerful magical blast.

"Hahahahahaha…" cackled the tall sorcerer as he aimed his blast. "DIE!"

With that, the sorcerer fired his spell, intent on finishing Chrom off. Robin quickly jumped in the way and sent an electric spell to intercept the sorcerer's, canceling the two spells out in an enormous explosion. The second smokescreen cleared to see that neither the sorcerer nor Robin was harmed by the explosion. The two magic-wielding combatants stared at each other.

"Hmm…" grunted the sorcerer as he narrowed his eyes on Robin.

Then all went black for Red and the white glow brought Red back to reality. Red shook his head and blinked rapidly as he tried to process what he had seen.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: "I saw something again…"**_

"Well?" asked Chrom. "Did you see anything?"

"From what I've saw," started Red. "I saw you and Robin in some great battle against an evil wizard or something… wow, that sounded cliché."

"Hmm… but I never met Robin in the past…"

"So that means Red saw a vision of the future!" finished Lissa.

Robin sighed disappointedly. He had hoped that Red saw a vision of Robin's past but that failed.

"Speaking of the past," said Chrom. "Could I talk to you two later, Robin and Red?"

Robin and Red nodded.

"Meet me here later. I have something important to say."

* * *

Yes, Magikarp rules.

Okay, I've finally finished all supports in Fire Emblem Awakening that are available with only the male Avatar character. That just leaves supports of female Avatar and male Morgan!

I've also received news on Pokémon X and Y and the upcoming Super Smash Bros. - can't wait!

Regarding the sixth generation of Pokémon, I will NOT be doing anything with it right now; I plan on waiting for the actual game to be released and play it myself (or wait for actual gameplay footage of story mode to appear on Youtube).

If there's a Pokémon that you want to see in action, please tell me in a review or a PM.

Finally, reviews and constructive criticism are welcome!


	12. Chapter 12: VS Villainous Team!

Many thanks for your reviews, favorites, follows and PMs!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or Fire Emblem; those belong to Nintendo.**

**Chapter 12: VS Villainous Team!**

* * *

Dusk fell. Chrom waited in the grassy courtyard of Castle Ylisstol. Several thoughts and memories swirled within his head, making him sigh out of exhaustion. Being a leader was very taxing to him.

At last, Robin and Red arrived. Although Chrom was facing them, they could see that he was deep in thought and did not notice them.

"So, Chrom," prompted Robin after a few moments of silence from Chrom. "What did you call us out here for?"

"Oh!" said the prince as he finally returned to reality, blinking as he took in the sight of the tactician and the Pokemon trainer. "Sorry about me spacing out – just… dueling with some unpleasant thoughts. Tomorrow, we march to Regna Ferox to request additional soldiers."

He then looked at each of them in the eye and made sure they were paying attention.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Hidden Highland**_

"There's something you should know first," stated Chrom seriously before he paused hesitantly. "Not everything Gangrel said was a lie."

Robin and Red looked at each other in confusion and shock. Both of them only saw Gangrel once at the mountainous border pass and immediately hated him and his seemingly bloodthirsty warmongering. They thought that Gangrel would be the type of person to tell only blatant lies.

"The last exalt, my father, waged war on Plegia for many years," Chrom explained before he sighed heavily.

He pinched the bridge of his nose and grimaced from the terrible memories.

"The violence..." he continued; he was close to tears. "It was a brutal campaign, ending only with his death fifteen years ago. Plegia rightfully remembers their suffering, but his war was no kinder to his own people. As the fighting dragged on, our army became more and more diminished. Farmers who could barely wield a pitchfork were conscripted and sent to their deaths. Soon there was no food at all, and the kingdom began to collapse. I was young, but I remember those dark times. ...I know how they affected Emmeryn."

"Such an experience would change anyone," replied Robin, agreeing with him, with Red nodding his head.

"Indeed," said Chrom as he shook his head in sorrow towards his older sister. "When our father died before her tenth year, he left her quite the legacy... Plegia's desire for vengeance... Our own people's unbridled rage... My sister became a target for blame from all sides. Her own subjects began to hurl insults—and stones. She still bears the scar from one... But she never let them see her pain. Only Lissa and I understood."

"It must have been so hard..." muttered Robin solemnly.

"Anybody would become depressed or insane," added Red. "How did she go through all that?"

"I cannot claim to know how she does it," answered Chrom as he sadly and fondly smiled as he thought about Emmeryn. "I could never greet such hostility with warmth and patience. While our people mocked and vilified her, she reached out and healed them. She brought soldiers home to their families. She ended the war. And when Ylisse's spirit was mended and the people 'forgave' her? ...She never resented them for it. She represents the best of the halidom—the part most worth protecting. She IS peace."

His visage grimly changed.

"But some men would take advantage of that," he continued, shaking his head as he looked down towards his sheathed sword. "Men like King Gangrel. The day he understands peace will be the day death gives it to him."

"So perhaps I must be death's agent," finished Chrom at last with resolution. "Emmeryn would never order him killed, nor would I wish her to."

"Well spoken, sir," stated a familiar voice.

Chrom knew to whom the voice belonged to.

"Marth…" he muttered as he turned to see the masked teenager in blue quietly walk up to him and the others.

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "You may call me Marth."**_

"Good evening to you," Marth greeted stoically.

Chrom looked around the courtyard.

"How did you get in here?" he asked.

"The cleft in the castle wall, behind the maple grove," replied the masked swordsman as if it were a matter of fact.

"There? But how would you...? Ugh."

"You know the place, Chrom?" queried Robin.

Everybody can see that Chrom was a little red in the face in slight embarrassment.

"Yes," he replied before he scratched the back of his head with a somewhat sheepish smile. "I bashed in part of the wall while training the Shepherds. It's only a small hole, and I'd thought it well concealed, but..."

"Your secret is safe with me," cut in Marth. "I come here only to warn you."

That statement got everybody's attention as Chrom, Robin and Red stared at him.

"Warn us?" said Chrom.

"The exalt's life is in danger," elaborated Marth.

"What, Emmeryn? That's absurd. She's guarded at all hours."

"What if... What if I told you I have seen the future? Would you believe me? A future where Emmeryn is killed. Here. Tonight."

"Seen the future? Have you lost your wits?"

"Yes, I expected you wouldn't believe me. So allow me to prove it!"

Marth unsheathed his sword. Everybody can see that it was the same sword he had when he fought Chrom back in Regna Ferox, a seemingly possible twin of Chrom's Falchion. Chrom was about to follow suit, thinking he was going to fight Marth again, but stopped when he put his hand at his sword's hilt as he noticed that Marth did not make any more movements; he merely held his sword straight up in one hand.

"I'm about to save your life," started Marth as he turned to some thick nearby bushes. "From him."

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "I mean it, go!"**_

Suddenly, as if on cue, an assassin ran out of the bushes, wearing brown leather armor with a dark red hood and split cape with a sword ready. Seeing the attack coming, Marth threw the Falchion lookalike high into the air, backflipping after it as it spun midair. The assailant was about to swing his sword with both hands at Chrom before Marth, as he fell, swung his sword hard downward just as he landed in a crouching position on both feet. The assassin, who got slashed in the back by Marth, dropped his sword before he collapsed, dead.

"I trust this proof will suffice?" asked Marth grimly as he stood up, sweeping his sword to punctuate his point.

Chrom, slightly stupefied and in shock, replied: "Yeah…"

Robin readied his spellbook while Red unclipped a Pokeball from his belt. However, what happened next caught even Marth off guard.

A second assassin leaped out of the nearby trees, already with a sword in mid-swing. Marth gasped in surprise and tried to dodge the slash, but he slipped as he stepped on the dead first assassin's blade. The attacker's slash narrowly missed Marth's face and instead of drawing blood, the assassin cut Marth's mask cleanly in two with a metallic CLANG.

Marth gasped in both fear, because of a near hit, and shock, because of becoming unmasked as his long blue hair suddenly billowed out behind his head, revealing that he (or she, rather) was actually a girl, to Robin and Red's surprise.

The girl regained her footing just as Chrom quickly came to her rescue. With a battle cry, the prince charged at the assassin, unsheathing Falchion and slashing him with it in one swing. The assassin flopped onto the ground, dead as well as the first.

Chrom turned around to see Marth, only to be just as surprised as Red and Robin were as he saw that Marth was indeed a female.

"Wait, you're – you're a woman?" he stuttered.

"And quite the actress, too," replied Marth with snarky exasperation. "Honestly, I'm surprised you didn't figure it out until just now."

A large explosion rang out into the night; part of a castle wall had collapsed. Chrom, Robin, Red and Marth quickly rushed off towards trouble.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Team Magma Appears!**_

Meanwhile, outside of the castle wall that now had a large crumbling gap in it, Plegian soldiers dressed in red rushed in. A man, with a dark goatee and sinister purple sorcerer's robes turned to one of the dark mages. He sniggered evilly before he issued an order.

"Remember, I want the Emblem in my hand and Emmeryn dead on the floor," he demanded. "Let nothing distract you from either purpose."

"As you will it," obeyed the dark mage before he rushed off with the other soldiers.

Just behind the castle wall was a male redhead dressed in dirty and drab black and brown colored clothing with a black shawl draped on his shoulders and back. Hefted on his shoulder was a large brown sack. He was horrified of what he had just heard.

"Whoa, whoa, did I just hear that right?" he asked himself, startled. "We're to KILL the exalt? I'm just here for the plunder. You know, line my pockets with some royal goods. The exalt's such a sweet lady... Sure, I'll rob her blind, but I'd never harm her!"

He slinked away in the shadows, hoping to find a way to prevent the exalt's murder.

Meanwhile, inside the castle, the Shepherds scrambled towards where Emmeryn was. Chrom was relieved to see her, but was still worried for her.

"Emm!" he called out to her.

"Chrom!" responded the exalt desparately. "Take Lissa and flee while you still have time!"

"No! We're not leaving you! Just stay where it's safe!"

Robin surveyed the castle lobby. He can see that a large number of enemy soldiers had already entered, but area was too dark to see what type of soldiers they were.

"There's a lot of them here…" he murmured in thought as he tried to formulate a strategy. "The assassins should scatter if we can defeat their leader."

Back outside, the sorcerer can see that Chrom was unharmed.

"Hmph! Two assassins and the little princeling was not even wounded?" he snarled angrily before something caught his eye. "...Wait. Some of these actors do not belong on this stage..."

He looked past the gap in the castle wall and narrowed his eyes. He saw Robin.

"Ho ho! Can it be?!" he crowed to himself arrogantly. "After years of searching... Tonight, fate truly piles the gifts at my feet! First, these powerful beasts that I now have under my control, and now…"

Whatever he said next was quickly buried by the hustle of the remaining soldiers arriving at the castle as it was spoken.

Marth was standing in front of the doors leading into the room where Emmeryn was hiding in. She had already unsheathed her sword, ready to bar and attack any enemy soldiers who plan on murdering Emmeryn.

Suddenly, her sword began to glow softly.

"Falchion is gleaming…" she murmured.

"What's wrong?" asked Chrom as he looked towards her; Marth had her back facing to him, so Chrom did not see the glow.

"It's not your concern."

"Seems like nothing ever is with you."

"My apologies."

"Just stay by Emmeryn's door. We'll handle the killers."

With that, Chrom rushed to join the other Shepherds, who had split up into two separate parties, one at each side of the lobby. Marth remained by the doors to Emmeryn's throne room.

"Chrom, please!" pleaded Emmeryn fearfully. "Flee while you still can! You each have but one life, and I do not wish it weighed against mine!"

"Everybody! We must take out the enemy soldiers! Protect Emmeryn at all costs!" called out Chrom, choosing not to heed Emmeryn's desperate plea.

Emmeryn could only helplessly watch Chrom and the Shepherds rush into battle, fearing for their lives.

Out in one side of the castle lobby, Robin turned to Red.

"Red, which Pokemon are you going to use for this battle?" he asked.

Red looked around the lobby, similarly to how Robin surveyed it earlier. He took note of the stone pillars that held the ceiling above them and how dark the area is (though some torches from the nearby throne room where Emmeryn was at least brought some light in).

"It might be too cramped for the larger Pokemon to fight in, plus they might accidentally bring the whole roof down," murmured Red as he thought through his choices. "We would need something small and fast but hits hard…"

His hand scrolled against the Pokeballs clipped on his belt before it stopped on the Pokeball he chose. He unclipped it and got ready to throw it.

"Go, Pikachu!" he called.

At once, the familiar yellow Mouse Pokemon materialized. It blinked twice in the dim light before it turned to face Red.

"You ready to go?" asked the Pokemon trainer.

"Pika!" chirped the electric Pokemon, nodding its head once.

"Alright, let's get some light in here! Use Flash!"

"PIKA!"

Pikachu's red cheek pouches began to glow brightly. Surprisingly, they let out white light instead of red light one may expect. The glow extended from Pikachu at a radius several meters long. Several enemy soldiers nearby who were trying to stage an ambush underneath the darkness swore at being exposed. Robin and Red can see that they were a diverse group, consisting of soldiers such as burly fighters, mounted cavaliers and dark mages.

"Damn it!" shrieked one of the fighters, angrily banging his axe on the stone floor. "That thing blew our cover!"

"Kill it!" called out one of the cavaliers, whose voice was slightly muffled by the metal helm he wore, as he brandished his sword.

"It's just a mere mouse," said one of the dark mages as he focused his magic from his tome. "It should be easy."

"Pikachu, dodge it!" ordered Red. "Then counter with Thunderbolt!"

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Black 2 and White 2: VS. Plasma Grunt!**_

The dark mage hurled a blast of dark magic from his hands at Pikachu. Pikachu zipped to the side at the last second, letting the blast hit the spot it was standing at earlier harmlessly. Then it decided to taunt the dark mage by turning around and slapping its rear, laughing while it did so.

"Pipipipipipi! Pi-kapi-ka-chuuuuu!"

"Grr…!" growled the dark mage angrily. He did not understand what Pikachu was saying, but he recognized the tone. He immediately fired more shots at the Mouse Pokemon, but it dodged everytime. Eventually, Pikachu became bored and finally executed Red's battle command.

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu cried out as it fired an arc of yellow lightning at the dark mage.

"AAAHHHH!" the dark mage screamed as he was electrically shocked. The attack quickly ended, leaving him smoldering on his back on the floor.

"DIIEE!" howled a cavalier as he urged his horse mount on. He charged at Pikachu, ready to impale it with his metal lance.

"Pikachu, dodge and use Iron Tail on the legs!" called out Red.

"Pika!" cried out Pikachu as it charged at the horse rider. The cavalier jabbed downwards to hit the Pokemon, but it slid low to the ground as its tail took on a silver metallic appearance. Pikachu then slammed its Iron Tail attack directly on the front legs of the horse, which could not check its headlong rush enough to jump over it. The horse neighed loudly in pain as the Iron Tail not only stopped its charge, but also crippled it. The electric-type Pokemon slid out from underneath the horse and stood up from behind it just as the horse bucked its rider off. The inertia sent the cavalier sailing right into a nearby stone pillar face-first, knocking him out. The horse collapsed onto the ground in pain.

"What if it's like one of 'em creatures Validar has?" gasped out a fighter to the other soldiers.

"If it is," started another dark mage. "Then kill it!"

Pikachu was soon swarmed by the red-clad soldiers. Of course, Red was not too worried.

"Discharge!"

"PIKA… CHUUUUUUUUU!"

At once, electricity surged in all directions around Pikachu. Several hapless soldiers flopped onto the ground with black and grey electrical burns. Soon, other soldiers found themselves cut or stabbed from behind as the other Shepherds dispatched them easily; the soldiers were distracted by Pikachu's zooming speed and electrical mayhem.

Suddenly, through one of the empty castle corridors, came a woman. She had purple body armor and knee-high leg armor on and had her dark brown hair tied into twin braids. What set her apart from other people were her pair of floppy rabbit-like ears and the short tail from her rear. Fur covered her lower torso and her wrists.

"I knew there was wisdom in slipping in with those rogues," she muttered as she looked around the chaos. "Look how these man-spawn claw at each other like savages! I will repay my warren's debt and then wash my hands of their race."

Chrom, who heard her footsteps and muttering, turned to see her, ready to attack her with his sword.

"Another assassin?" he wondered.

Marth rushed over to him. "Hold! Panne is not your enemy."

"You know her?"

"I know...of her. And I knew she would come here tonight."

"Quite the prophet, aren't you?"

"As you say. And I swear to you, Panne is an ally."

"Good enough for me. All right, Shepherds! For now, we leave this Panne character be."

"Is that wise, milord?" asked Frederick, concerned for Chrom and the Shepherds' safety.

"Marth has earned our trust," stated Chrom firmly. "She enjoys her secrets, I know. ...Like her gender, for one. But she's also saved our lives. Twice. And that's enough for me."

"Chrom... Thank you," said Marth softly, happy that Chrom trusted her.

Chrom smiled at her before he turned to the battle. "Now, to the matter at hand: driving these scoundrels from our castle!"

Panne took on an animalistic crouch stance on all four of her limbs and then she suddenly transformed into a large rabbit-like creature; she was even larger than an armored horse! Her purple body armor had expanded to fit her large and imposing, yet slim (for her current size) form. She quickly ran over to a hapless fighter, angled herself on her arms (or forelegs) and slammed her strong back legs into his face, knocking him out instantly.

"Whoa!" said Red; he was surprised by her sudden and drastic transformation. "What did you do?!"

Panne, who had heard the Pokemon trainer using her sensitive and sharp ears, turned to him and explained what she was. Red had piqued her interest as he only looked at her with curiosity and wonder, not with prejudice and blind hatred. She was also fascinated by the Pokemon he commanded; they can certainly fight in ways similar yet different to her and she can easily see the great amount of trust Pikachu and Red had for each other. Pikachu (under Red's command) and Panne worked well together and made short work of several enemy soldiers.

"This boy…" thought Panne as she kicked a cavalier down. "He knows how to speak to non-humans."

A few minutes later, Chrom noticed someone lurking in the shadows. He ran over to him and saw a redhead thief toting a large brown sack over his back and wielding an iron sword in reverse grip. At once, Chrom thrust his sword forward, ready to stab the man in the chest.

"Drop your weapon, or die where you stand!" demanded Chrom. He was not in the mood for any nonsense.

"Easy there, blue blood," said the thief calmly as he dropped the sack and the sword on the floor and raised his arms up, showing empty palms. "I'm Gaius… and I'm not here to hurt anyone."

"Yet you run with a band of assassins?"

"Believe it or not, just trying to make a living. I'm a thief, see? Bust open doors, crack into chests… that kind of thing. This lot said they wanted to break into some type of vault. Nobody said anything about murder. I'd just as soon sit this one out."

Chrom calmed down and lower the Falchion.

"Hmm..." said Chrom thoughtfully. "Then perhaps you'd be willing to prove your good intentions?"

"Beg pardon?" queried Gaius.

"We need all the help we can get to save the exalt's life. You appear capable, and we could use any information you have about our foes."

Gaius smirked. "Oh, right—those good intentions. Fine then, I'll prove my sincerity...if you sweeten the deal."

Chrom growled, annoyed. "You want gold? ...Fine, you scoundrel. Let me just—oops."

A small pouch tumbled off of Chrom's waist and fell onto the floor with a soft clatter.

"Looks like you dropped something," said Gaius, amused. "What's in the satchel, mmm?"

"Nothing," replied Chrom. "Just candies from my little sister. I'm sure you—"

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "Agh! Won goph in mah mouph! Blech! Ptooey!"**_

"'Candies?' As in, sugar candies?"

Gaius began to drool. Chrom felt a little disturbed by the sight.

"Well...yes," started Chrom at last after a few moments of awkward silence. "I assumed they'd be sweet? But—"

"IT'S A DEAL!" interrupted Gaius excitedly as bits of saliva flew from his mouth.

Chrom was stunned and perplexed by the declaration.

"...You'll risk your life for us if I give you...a bag of candy?" he asked confusedly.

"I said 'sweeten the deal,' didn't I?" asked Gaius as if Chrom were stupid. "Don't get me wrong, I'll take the gold, too – later. Unless you've got more of these. ...HAVE YOU GOT MORE OF THESE?!"

"Um...I'll ask Lissa," replied Chrom as he slowly and nervously backed away from Gaius, who had a maniacal expression on his face, complete with a salivating mouth and madly gleaming wide eyes.

Gaius, after stowing away the pouch of candies, picked up his iron sword and joined the battle.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Team Plasma, Again.**_

At last, the number of the enemy soldiers began to thin out as many of them fell to the Shepherds. However, the situation took a turn for the worse.

KA-BOOOMMM!

Several Shepherds close to the explosion were sent sprawling onto the floor and against the wall, injured by the blast and flying rubble. Chrom, along with Robin, Frederick, Red, Panne and Gaius arrived at the scene, worried for the injured Shepherds.

"By the gods…" Chrom gasped. "What the hell happened here?!"

"Ugh…" groaned Vaike as he tried to stand using his axe as a crutch. "This is… not enough… to beat the Vaike!"

"I'm okay!" called out Kellam, waving. Of course, nobody (but Red and Panne) heard him.

"Wher' in tarnation did that boom come from!?" cried out Donnel.

Lissa and Maribelle scrambled around, trying to help their fellow comrades recover.

Out of nowhere, a low cackling filled the air, silencing the Shepherds as it echoed through the lobby. Slowly and deliberately, Validar the sorcerer walked in flanked by a large dragon that appeared to have three heads and of blue, purple and black color.

* * *

Sorry for the long wait, everybody! I got distracted a lot during the past month! Hope you enjoy this chapter and await the next chapter!

As usual, reviews and constructive criticism are welcome!


	13. Chapter 13: VS Validar!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or Fire Emblem; those belong to Nintendo.**

**Chapter 13: VS. Validar!**

* * *

Red knew what the three-headed dragon was, but he took out his Pokedex to warn the fellow Shepherds.

"Hydreigon, the Brutal Pokemon," beeped the handheld device. "A Dark and Dragon type. It responds to movement by attacking. This scary, three-headed Pokemon devours everything in its path!"

Robin and Chrom stepped up, ready to face off against Validar, who was carrying a red tome that Robin recognized as the Elfire tome, and the three-headed dragon. Chrom readied his Falchion while Robin channeled some magic from his Thunder tome into his hand.

"Well, well... Ha ha ha! Oh, I know you..." cackled Validar as he eyed Robin with greedy recognition. "Submit to me, and perhaps I might honor you with the truth!"

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: Miscreant**_

At once, the sorcerer shot a large fireball towards Robin, eager to burn him but not kill him. Robin jumped back and fired a Thunder spell in retaliation with Chrom following after the spell to gang up on Validar by swinging his sword right after Robin's spell connected with Validar, leaving said sorcerer with some electrical burns and a large cut.

"Fufufu… not bad…" thought Validar, mildly impressed and amused by Robin and Chrom's combination attack. He turned to his Hydreigon.

"Hydreigon," he commanded. "Use Crunch!"

The Brutal Pokemon turned to its nearest target, which happened to be Chrom. Chrom quickly sidestepped narrowly as all three of Hydreigon's heads dove down where he had been standing before, ripping holes into the tiled floor. The 3 heads reemerged from the ground, munching and spitting out dirt and tile pieces. Chrom took the opportunity to jump up and slash at one of its arms (or necks) with his Falchion, leaving a particularly nasty cut (the Falchion had properties that allow it to deal massive damage on draconic targets; Dragon-type Pokemon are no exception). The Hydreigon roared furiously and painfully while Chrom stumbled as he landed on the rubble.

Validar growled in frustration. "Annihilate him with Tri Attack!"

Hydreigon was eager for revenge from getting slashed by the Falchion and immediately complied. All three heads opened their maws and fired three different-colored beams. The main middle head fired a stream of red flames, the left head fired an electric yellow energy beam and the right head fired a frozen cyan energy beam, all at Chrom.

"Back off," ground out Robin through gritted teeth as he quickly shoved Chrom out of harm's way and fired a Thunder spell. The spell intercepted with the Tri Attack and exploded as the Tri Attack shot through it. The high-energy explosion was enough to send Robin and Chrom sprawling on the floor. The triple-elemental beam attacked struck the floor, leaving the spot covered with scorch marks, electrical burns and a thin layer of ice. Robin and Chrom both did not want to imagine what would have happened if they did not move in time.

Red can easily see that Hydreigon was very powerful but decided to not recall Pikachu, even if it was growing exhausted from zipping around, zapping the enemy soldiers; he trusted his Pikachu wholeheartedly.

"Pikachu, can you keep fighting?" he asked to Pikachu.

"Pika," it replied with a short nod.

"Alright, but don't push yourself too hard. I only need you to weaken the Hydreigon."

He quietly stepped up with Pikachu in front of Validar and Hydreigon, ready for battle.

**Music track: **_**Pokemon: Team Magma and Team Aqua Grunt Battle**_

"Emmeryn was supposed to be an easy target..." started Validar as he watched the trainer and his starter Pokemon approach him. "You will pay for interfering in my designs! Hydreigon, destroy that boy and his little rat with Dark Pulse!"

"Pikachu, dodge and use Quick Attack!" countered Red as he got ready to run from Hydreigon's Dark-type attack.

Hydreigon took aim and fired out a ray of vile dark purple energy ring that were imbued with horrid thoughts at Pikachu and Red. Red fled from the spot while Pikachu responded by using Quick Attack to zip away with white light trailing behind it before it slammed itself headfirst into the Dark-Dragon type's body.

"Now follow it up with Brick Break!" continued Red.

After Pikachu landed on the ground after rebounding from using Quick Attack, it jumped up again. With glowing fists, it punched Hydreigon's main head in the face, dealing devastating damage.

"Headbutt!" called out Validar.

Hydreigon took advantage of Pikachu being stuck in midair and at close range by rearing its head back before smacking itself into Pikachu's head hard. Unnoticed by everybody but Red, some electricity streamed from Pikachu's body into Hydreigon's when Hydreigon's Headbutt made contact.

CRACK! BZZT!

"PIKAAAAAAA!" Pikachu screamed as it cringed from the harsh blow and was sent hurtling back at Red's feet, badly hurt.

"Pikachu, return!" called out a worried Red as he pulled out Pikachu's Pokeball and recalled it before he looked at the Pokeball. "You did a good job, thanks and have a nice rest."

"Heheheheh…" laughed Validar gloatingly. "That little mouse is clearly no match for Hydreigon… hm?"

An electrical buzzing filled the air next to him. He turned to look at Hydreigon, whose body had begun to crackle with electricity. The Brutal Pokemon winced and growled in pain each time the electricity arced from its body; it was struggling to even stay in the air, let alone move.

"What?!" shrieked Validar angrily. "What happened?!"

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Black 2 and White 2: Victory Is Right Before Your Eyes! (Gym Leader's Last Pokemon)**_

His snarling face was soon met by a Thunder spell from Robin, who took advantage of his shock.

Red had a small smirk as he clipped Pikachu's Pokeball back onto his belt before he pulled out a different Pokeball. "Pikachu's Static ability. Never touch electric Pokemon directly."

He tossed the Pokeball into the air, calling out a "Go, Venusaur!"

The large quadruped turquoise dinosaur with its large flowering plant materialized in front of Red.

"Venusaur…" said the Grass-Poison type as it looked at the paralyzed Hydreigon and stomped over to it, ready to finish the battle.

"Grr…" Hydreigon growled, reeling in pain from the paralysis, but it looked ready to continue fighting with a vengeance.

"Venusaur, grab Hydreigon with Vine Whip!" shouted Red.

"Saur!" replied the large Seed Pokemon as two vines shot out from underneath its large tree-like flower and coiled around Hydreigon's body, immobilizing it.

"What? No!" snarled Validar desperately. "Use Crunch to break free!"

Hydreigon's heads snapped their jaws shut onto Venusaur's Vine Whips, making Venusaur grit its teeth in pain.

"Venusaur, slam Hydreigon into the ground!" countered Red.

Venusaur obeyed the order by swinging its tendrils downwards and upwards, making Hydreigon meet the ground and the air multiple times. After doing so for several times, Venusaur tossed Hydreigon into the wall, making the Dark-Dragon Pokemon groan in pain. The Brutal Pokemon slipped out of the crater in the wall and onto the ground, fainted.

Validar, meanwhile, was seething in baffled fury as he surprisingly pulled out a Pokeball and recalled Hydreigon before he readied his magic tome.

"YOU'LL PAY FOR RUINING MY PLANS!" he shrieked as he fired out the most powerful Elfire spell he can muster.

Red was about to order Venusaur to dodge when he noticed that the fire spell was not aimed at Venusaur – it was aimed at him! Red gasped out of surprise when he saw it coming.

Suddenly, a large, brown and furry ball shunted him out of the way. Red toppled onto the ground and saw Panne in her beast form crouching on all fours protectively in front of him. The Elfire spell landed on the ground where Red was standing before and exploded; nobody was hurt.

"You are safe," said Panne to him as she stood up on her hind legs.

Validar was outraged that his attack missed that he did not notice Robin and Chrom rushing at him, double-teaming him once again; his body soon met a Thunder spell and a powerful Falchion slash from them respectively before Panne landed the finishing blow by charging at him, turning around, and slamming its two hind legs into his face hard. Validar soon fell onto his back, defeated.

"No... This is...all...wrong..." he growled softly. "How could...you have known the plan..."

His body slumped as if it were dead.

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "Negotiation's not my strong suit."**_

"Thank the gods you're safe!" shouted Chrom as he and Robin burst in through the doors into the throne room, seeing his older sister unharmed.

"It is you I have to thank, Chrom," Emmeryn replied.

"I beg your forgiveness, milord!" called Phila as she rushed up to the prince. "I failed in my duty—they should have never made it into the castle in the first place!"

"Peace, Phila," reassured Chrom. "You couldn't have known what was coming. Only Marth could..."

"Marth?" queried Emmeryn, puzzled that somebody would go by the legendary Hero King's name.

"Yes, I would speak more with..." Chrom started before looked around the throne room to see that the blue-haired girl was nowhere in sight. "Um... Robin, where's Marth?

"Hmm…" pondered the tactician as he looked around, too. "An excellent question. She was here a moment ago..."

"Not again!"

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "You may call me Marth."**_

The girl in question was standing around in the castle courtyard. She was taking a last look at the area, melancholy swirling within her mind, before leaving. Just before she could, Chrom stepped in front of her.

"Going somewhere?" asked Chrom amusedly. "You have a bad habit of leaving without saying good-bye, you know."

"Yes, I'm afraid I have a few bad habits," replied Marth.

"Good ones as well—you saved my life as well as both of my sisters. Is there a way I can repay you? Some favor I can grant?"

Marth gave out a small smile.

"Hearing you offer is reward enough," she replied.

"But there must be something..." protested Chrom.

"I already have what I came for: history has been rewritten."

"And what future averted?"

"After the exalt's untimely assassination, the Fire Emblem would be stolen. This, in turn, would lead to a great war, and soon to the end of mankind itself. ...But I'm sure that sounds like madness to you."

Chrom looked at the slightly nervous Marth before he shook his head.

"Strangely, no. It doesn't," he answered, quelling her nervousness. "Somehow I know I can trust you. And I hope someday to repay your favors."

"Perhaps one day you shall," she stated. "Until then..."

The girl turned to leave the courtyard quietly. Chrom watched her leave before he returned to the throne room.

At the throne room, Chrom just arrived to see Emmeryn standing with Phila, Robin and Panne. The exalt was speaking to Panne.

"Brave taguel, there are not words to express my gratitude," thanked Emmeryn gratefully.

"So you know our true name?" said Panne.

Robin was puzzled. "Sorry, what's a taguel?"

"I am a taguel," answered Panne before she narrowed her eyes as she remembered something horrible. "The... the last taguel. We are shape-shifters. Most of your kind called us "beast" or "coney" in the midst of their hunt. I only helped you because my warren owes Ylisse a debt. Do not think us friends, you and I!"

"I don't understand..."

"Yes, it's precious little your kind seem to understand. It was man-spawn like you that invaded our warren and slaughtered my people."

"What?!" gasped out Emmeryn in horror. "Is this true? Who would do such a thing?"

"Ha!" huffed Panne coldly. "Do not act so shocked. You are all the same. Right down to your base desire to ruin and destory all you touch—even each other."

"There is truth to your words, perhaps," conceded Emmeryn gravely. "I'm told that, in taguel society, everyone is treated as an equal. Mankind could have learned much from your warren. The words may come too late and mean too little, but I am deeply sorry. We have stolen your friends and family and made the world a lesser place."

"Your Grace—you had no fault in this!" piped up Phila.

"You claim to be blameless, and yet you would apologize?" snorted Panne in contempt. "Pah! Your words are but wind."

"I know..." sighed Emmeryn sadly. "But they are all I have."

Panne looked at the exalt's sad eyes for several moments, searching for any lies from her.

"You seem sincere, man-spawn," she declared at last. "You feel my pain as your own. ...I've never felt that before. Look at me. ...See what I am. I will never trust mankind. But you... Perhaps you truly are not like the others."

"All I ask is a chance to earn your trust."

**Music track: **_**Fire Emblem Awakening: "Something is very wrong."**_

In a cold, dark void of a world, Validar recovered from his deathlike state with a start.

"Nngh... How?!" he wondered feverishly, remembering the battle that took place earlier at Castle Ylisse. "My purpose is too significant...to be thwarted...here... Aaargh..."

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a figure shaped much like a human, yet shrouded in darkness and a cold, malevolent aura, approached him.

"Validar," said the figure, beckoning towards him.

"What? Who are you..." demanded Validar as he looked around the dark void. "Where did you...come from?"

"I am the power that compels you. You will not perish here. It is not written. You must live on to author a destiny greater than you know."

"I-impossible! It can't be you! It can't be..."

"I am the wings of despair. I am the breath of ruin. I am the fell dragon, Grima..."

**Music track: **_**Pokemon Black and White: Carrying Out a Mission**_

Back at the throne room, everyone, after feeling relieved that Emmeryn was safe, wondered how the assassination attempt was carried out and by whom.

"It will take time to investigate how the assassination plot got so far," said Phila. "We have no leads at present."

"It was Plegia! I'm sure of it. They'd do anything for the Emblem," growled Chrom angrily before he turned to Emmeryn worriedly. "Emm, you can't stay here. Come to Ferox where it's safe."

"And leave the people undefended?" asked Emmeryn rhetorically. "War is at our borders, Chrom. Do you expect Ylisse to stand against Plegia without a leader? They must know their exalt stands with them."

"But if something happens to you? What then?"

"Your Grace, perhaps you might relocate to the eastern palace for the time being?" suggested Frederick. "The other kingdoms know nothing of it. You would be safer."

"Yes, please," added Chrom, agreeing with the great knight. "At least that. I can't leave for Ferox with you right in harm's way."

Emmeryn remained silent for several seconds in thought before she sighed in defeat.

"Hmm. Very well," she conceded.

"Thanks, Emm. I mean it," said Chrom as she walked out of the throne room to sleep. "We'll escort you to the palace before we head north to the border."

* * *

Wow... I'm really feeling out of it these days. Sorry about the long wait!

Recently, I attended Otakon 2013; it was the first Japanese pop culture convention I have ever attended, and it was AWESOME! Lots of photos to take and lots of Streetpass tags picked up that my right index finger was sore from holding down the R-shoulder button to speed up those messages in the 3DS Streetpass Mii Plaza.

... Now I have the sudden urge to make a crossover between Pokémon and the light novel/anime series, Sword Art Online. Now I'm trying to watch the anime episodes so I can learn more about it and try to figure out a way to fit Pokémon-related scenarios in it.

Anyways, hope you readers enjoyed this chapter! Reviews and constructive criticism are always welcome!

UPDATE (8/14/13): Coming soon: A crossover between Pokémon and Sword Art Online! First chapter in progress!


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